Search For The Sun
by Deathcomessoon
Summary: Dakota, who had recently been made a orphan, is sent to Wammy's where she meets new friends and maybe she came find someone to brighten up her life, but maybe her nightmares are trying to tell her something. LXOC UNDER CONSTRUCTION.
1. The Beginning

This story probably won't have anything to do with Kira and Light most likely won't be in it. Dakota and L are fourteen years old, L won't be in the next couple chapters. It's mostly about Dakota and what happened. This is a LxOC story. If Light is in it he will be seen as an enemy. I do not like Light.

L is Justice and Light is evil. If you don't like it don't read.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. I only own Dakota.**

_I have edited a few things to fit the story better. I didn't like the way it was going. My writing style changed slightly as well._

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 1

**Day 1**

People stared at a petite blond girl as she walked down the crowded city street.

She was named Dakota after her great aunt, who her mother had adored.

The elder Dakota had died in a car crash which had killed both her and her husband.

The blond haired girl was dressed as though she was attending a funeral, clad completely in black.

She had on a pair of black skinny jeans and a plain black t-shirt, accompanied by a pair of black and white converse.

Most people assumed she was Gothic, but the truth was she despised wearing any other color.

Her mother thought it was just a faze she was going through, when in truth she wasn't sure she would ever wear overly bright colors.

Her blond hair fell a little past her shoulder blades and had a natural wave to it.

Dakota continued down the street ignoring the curious glaces of everyone shopping at the nearby stores.

What they thought of her never really mattered to her.

She didn't have friends seeing as she was several years younger than everyone else in her class.

The small female was years ahead of her own age group in intelligence.

Most of the other kids in her class were 17 or 18, while she was 14.

Some of the older kids tried to make friends with her, but she was too, for lack of a better word, strange.

She had never really gotten along with others.

It wasn't that she was anti social, she just thought and acted different.

She was more focused one her school work than on dating and fashion.

"Mom, I'm home!" She announced, walking through the brightly colored front door of the small house she called her home.

Instead of her mother hugging her the second she took of her shoes, like usual, she was met by an strange silence.

"Mom?" She repeated, looking in the living room where everything appeared how it had when she left for school that morning.

Dakota was confused, her mother got off work an hour before she got home from school.

It wasn't like her to be late, in fact Dakota couldn't remember the last time her mother wasn't there waiting for her.

She pulled out her cell phone and dialed her mother's number.

After four rings she gave up sitting on the couch, becoming concerned for her Mother's safety.

She knew it was too soon to report her missing, and that she was overreacting, but her mother was the only person she had left.

Her deadbeat father had left her mother and her when she was six, and she was an only child.

Her grandparents on both sides had passed on, and she had no aunts or uncles that she knew of.

She turned on the television and flipped through channels until she found one of those news channel, where they were either playing bad news or something about celebrities.

Usually she wouldn't give it a single glance before changing the channel.

Today however it caught her interest.

It was a program about the world famous detective L.

She didn't know much about him, just that he had solved over three dozen, seemingly unsolvable, cases and had yet to reveal his face, or name, to the media.

Only one person, known as Watari to the public, had ever been able to contact L, in person or otherwise.

Other than that nothing was known about the famous detective, only that he was extremely intelligent.

The program did a good job of distracting her for a an hour or so, but she soon found herself worrying about her mother again.

_Why isn't she home yet?_ Maybe she just got held up at work.

It was only an excuse though, she was never home late.

She was almost anal about being home on time.

Always worried about her young daughter.

A knock at the door pulled her from her thoughts and she sighed in relief.

She stood her face becoming emotionless once more.

She opened the door expecting to see her mother, but standing there instead were two police men.

One was quite a bit older and his face was gentle, though he looked like he had been through quite a lot in his lifetime.

The other was probably in his early twenties and refused to meet her eyes, instead staring intently at his black work boots.

"Hello," She was trying her hardest to keep her voice from shaking, though failing slightly.

She hoped everything was okay, her mother couldn't just leave her.

Dakota wasn't ready to be on her own, not yet.

The blond haired girl took a deep breath to calm herself, though it was useless.

Her thoughts had always leaned toward the worst outcome, she hoped it was just her pessimistic attitude this time and everything was okay.

That her mom was just caught in traffic and would soon be coming home to make dinner for them both, just like every other night.

"I'm officer Wilson and this is my partner officer Drake," The older cop stated.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Her tone was polite, like always, as she gave them both a curt nod.

Her mother had taught her manners.

"Are you Dakota Hudson?" Officer Wilson asked.

His hair looked as though it was once midnight black, but now had gray mixed into it, giving a salt and pepper color.

She would have considered him good looking if he wasn't so much older than herself.

"Yes I am. May I ask why?" She sounded clear and confident, but inside she was shaking with fear.

Though she didn't know it, her bright jade eyes showed everything.

"Are you the daughter of Cassandra Hudson?" He asked softly, concern evident.

"Yes. Why has something happened?" Dakota questioned, her emotionless expression breaking.

Officer Drake looked up at her expression with brilliant blue eyes.

When he saw the panic in her eyes he looked back down at the ground solemnly.

"I regret to inform you that there has been an accident," Officer Wilson sadly told her, his steel colored eyes dropping to his shoes, "Your mother didn't make it."

Dakota stopped breathing, she completely froze.

Her eyes shined brightly with tears.

She had expected it but that didn't make it hurt any less.

Her knees buckled causing her to drop to the ground.

Tears silently fell from her eyes, coating her cheeks in the salty liquid, but she made no move to wipe them away.

This had been the first time she had cried in years.

"P-please tell me you're kidding," She choked out.

She reached out and gripped the leg of his black slacks.

It as though she was reduced to a five year old child again, needing comfort, reassurance, anything.

"Please." Her voice sounded thick from the sobs she was restraining.

She didn't want to show her pain to strangers, but at this point she had no other choice.

It was her mother, she had lost _her mother_.

It hurt too much to keep it bottled up.

"I'm sorry," Officer Drake whispered kneeling beside her.

He pulled a tissue from his pocket and shakily wiped away her tears.

He offered her a hand to help her stand.

She accepted it and allowed him to lift her from the ground.

She opened her mouth to say something, but a strangled sound came out instead.

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, allowing her to cry on him.

He didn't see to care that she was staining his uniform with her tears.

She tried to stop the tears, but she found she couldn't.

She could barely breath, but her lungs were burning.

Her throat felt as though it had swollen shut.

"You have to breath," Officer Wilson smiled softly.

Dakota nodded and took in a deep breath.

"You should sit down," Officer Drake motioned to the inside of the house.

She gave a curt nod and walked inside, leaving the door open for them to follow her.

She sat down on the couch and wrapped her arms around a bright red throw pillow tightly, burying her face in the soft material.

She waited for them to join her, knowing she would have to talk about living arrangements.

She didn't want to move out quite yet.

Their small shared household was all she had left of her mother, but being a logical being she knew it would be impossible to stay.

Officer Wilson sat in the chair across for her while his younger partner sat beside Dakota on the couch.

"W-what's going to happen to me?" Dakota asked, pulling on a lock of her long hair.

She knew she definitely wasn't old enough to live alone, but she hoped she didn't have to enter the foster care system.

Her mother wouldn't have wanted that.

"Well, we can search for any relatives that live in the area," Officer Wilson consoled.

"I have no relatives and if I do they don't want me," She stated, leaving no room for argument.

"Well, we could always put you into an orphanage for a while and wait for someone to adopt you, or you could live with a foster parent for a while," He informed her, resting a calloused hand on her small shoulder.

"I'm not sure," She hid her pretty face in her hands.

She was on the verge of crying again, but was trying to calm herself.

Dakota never thought she would have to decide on something as big as this, at least not yet.

She was, to put it bluntly, terrified.

"You don't have to decide tonight, but we will have to know by tomorrow morning," He rubbed her back gently and soothingly.

She knew she had to decide, there was no one left to do it for her now.

Foster care was out of the question.

Kids usually came out pretty screwed up.

"No. I am on my own now. I must choose what is best for me," She commented shocking the officers. She cleared her throat and took a couple deep breaths. "I will stay at an orphanage until I am either adopted or I turn 18."

"Are you completely positive that's what you want?" Officer Drake asked.

Dakota nodded, a look of determination in her jade eyes.

"When will I leave?" She questioned running her hands over the small oak coffee table, as though she was trying to imprint the look and feel of it into her mind.

"We will have someone pick you up tomorrow," Officer Wilson said handing her a box of tissues from the end table beside the couch.

She took one and blew her nose unattractively, not that she cared.

"How much can I take?" Dakota asked near tears again.

"Only a suit case full," Officer Wilson had sympathy in his deep gray eyes.

"I understand," She stated, calmly and rationally, though inside she was anything but. "You can let yourselves out."

"I hope to see you again some day," Officer Drake said, smiling sadly at her.

"I hope so as well," She sniffed, wiping away the remainder of tears in her eyes.

She took a couple deep breaths, trying to put up her emotionless facade.

Dakota tried to give them a smile, but wasn't able to as she walked up her stairs to her room.

The officers left, returning to the police station to fill out her paperwork.

She would be staying in the closest of Wammy's Orphanages.

They were the nicest ones in the area, instead of sharing a room with seven or eight other girls she would have a single roommate.

Then after assessing her IQ and learning level, she would attend a nearby school learning within her range.

Dakota silently packed, not bothering to stop the tears as they dripped down her cheeks.

She packed only the bare essentials, such as a couple shirts and a few pairs of pants, all of which were black.

The intelligent girl carefully folded her favorite dress and set it in the small suitcase, she knew she would need for the funeral.

She dropped to her hands and knees, searching under her bed for her small lock box, which held all the money she had saved until then.

She carelessly threw the metal box into her bag, hiding the key in a side pocket.

She decided if she wished to buy something it would be nice to have money, and she had saved up quite a bit.

Probably over two thousand dollars, earned by babysitting, allowance, and from her job as a waitress at a local diner.

She walked down the now silent hall towards her mother's room.

Her mother never bought much for herself only what she really needed.

She spent most of her money on her only daughter, making sure she was as happy as possible.

Though a genuine smile was still rare from the girl, she loved her mother.

Dakota wordlessly rummaged through her mother's jewelry box for one thing in particular, a necklace.

It was a family heirloom, given to the women of the family once they turned 16.

She knew it was incredibly important to her mother, so once she found it she slipped it over her head.

It was a tear shaped ruby on a silver chain.

It was small, yet beautiful.

Her mother loved this necklace and had wore in her wedding picture, though most pictures of that occasion were throw out or hidden.

Dakota only hoped she could protect it and keep it from harm until she was able to give it to her own daughter.

She knew the chances of her falling in love were very low.

It's not that she wasn't pretty, she had inherited her looks from her mother, who was considered extremely beautiful.

Dakota was also very well developed for her age and very mature for a teen.

Dakota didn't believe in love. Her father had claimed to love her mother, and yet he had still left them.

Her mother had to work two jobs just to support them, and even when Dakota had offered her the money from her job she refused to except it, telling her that she earned it and to save it.

Dakota pulled one of her mother's silk night gowns from where it was hanging in her mother's closet.

She quickly changed from her school clothes to the silk night gown.

It hung off her small frame, a few sizes too big, but it still looked lovely on her.

It had been her mother's favorite.

Tears filled her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.

She wrapped her arms tightly around her torso, shaking slightly.

She crawled into her mother's large bed before falling unconscious for the first time in weeks.

Being an insomniac, sleep was hard to come by.

She was grateful to escape the world ever just for a bit.

Though her dreams were anything but pleasant.

* * *

I meant no offense towards Foster Children, this was just her opinion of Foster homes.


	2. My Sunshine

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note**

_This chapter has been edited as well. I hope you like it._

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 2

**Day 2  
**

Dakota awoke to the light streaming in through her mother's window.

Her mother's old alarm clock read 4 in the morning.

At first she was confused as to why she was in her mother's room, but then her eyes filled with tears as memories of yesterday traveled through her mind.

She gripped at the bedsheets, a ragged sob escaping her lips.

She tried to stop but it only made her sob harder.

Tears stained the white sheets, as she buried her face in them.

She closed her eyes tightly trying to fall back asleep.

She got out of bed when she found sleep impossible.

She walked down the hall to the bathroom, trying to avoid looking at the family pictures on the walls.

Once in the small bathroom she searched through the medicine cabinet for Tylenol or anything that would help with the headache that was quickly forming.

She stopped searching when a prescription bottle fell from the shelf and into the sink.

She lifted it and read the label: Zolpidem.

She had read about this certain pill in Health.

It was a sleeping pill, mainly used for insomniacs, but it wasn't Dakota's.

It was prescribed to her mom.

She hadn't ever seen this pill bottle before.

She hadn't realized her mother had any trouble sleeping.

She dumped the small white pills into her palm, they were tiny, but there was a lot of them probably enough to overdose on.

Without thinking she dumped them all into her mouth.

She reached for a cup of water, before realizing what she was about to do, and spat them out.

She was disgusted with herself she never thought she would ever get low enough to resort to suicide.

She turned on the cold water tap and splashed her face with it.

As she looked at her reflection in the small mirror, she looked as though she was dead or dying.

Her eyes were bloodshot and wide, black rings circled them, letting the world know she had trouble sleeping.

Her skin was paler than usual, being as close to paper white as physically possible.

Her usually silky blond hair was a tangled mess.

She knew that her mother wouldn't have wanted her to take her own life.

Her mother would have said suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem,.

Dakota also knew that it would be way easier to just off herself now, but she couldn't seem to find the energy to take the pills.

She just washed them down the sink, trying to rid herself of the temptation.

She stripped and stepped into the shower, washing away the sweat and tears from yesterday.

Her body shook as the warm water tried unsuccessfully to relax her muscles.

Her head was still throbbing, seeing as she hadn't taken any pain pills for her headaches.

She continued to scrub at her skin with soap, tears falling from her eyes.

She quickly brushed her teeth, grabbing a new toothbrush to pack in her bag.

She quickly pulled a brush through her knots, wincing as it caught a particularly painful one.

She grabbed some other essentials before walking down the hall to her room.

Dakota quickly on a knee length black dress, and put on her favorite black and white converse.

She searched her small closet for her old lucky black backpack.

She didn't necessarily believe in luck, but she had wore that backpack everyday for two years, and nothing bad had ever happen to her.

Until now that is.

She packed a couple more things in her backpack before slinging it over her shoulder.

She found herself wandering her small home.

She peeked into each room looking for things she wanted to take with her, before silently closing the doors.

She stole a picture of her and her mother from the computer room.

She could almost hear her mother's voice drifting down the empty halls.

"_You are my sunshine._

_My only sunshine._"

Her breath caught in her throat slightly.

"_You make me happy,_

_when skies are gray._"

She gripped the picture tighter in her hands as silently tears hit the frame.

"_You never know dear,_

_how much I love you._"

She stilled as she stared at a picture on the wall.

"_You'll never know dear,_

_how much I love you_."

Her mother and her had been visiting the local animal shelter, and her mother had been cuddling a puppy when Dakota took the picture.

"Please don't take my sunshine away." Dakota's voice finished, as she brushed her the tip of her index finger over her mother's smiling face.

She hurried into the closest room which happened to be her art room.

Drawings and paintings covered the walls, all amazingly done.

Dakota always had a thing for art.

Most of the drawings were if fallen angels and wilted roses.

Her mother always supported her even if her work was a little morbid.

She always said that Dakota should become an artist.

Dakota knew she was an exceptional artist, but wasn't sure if she could make money from her work.

Most of her art was lacking originality, it had all been done before.

She tried her hardest to change that but found she couldn't.

She sighed and made her way over to her desk that was splattered in red and black paint.

Painting was the only time she used color, seeing as you can't paint a sunset with black.

She ran her fingers over the edge of the drawers before opening each one.

In the first one she kept her different paints and such.

In the second one was some old paintings she didn't feel like hanging at the time, or that hadn't made her final cut.

In the the third was her drawing pad, which she quickly stuffed into her backpack, and old family photos, which she also grabbed.

She made sure they had there own pouch, making sure they were completely safe.

She pulled all of her drawings off the walls hiding them in the second drawer.

She then took out all her paints and started to paint a mural on the wall itself.

She knew what she was painting, she was going to paint one last thing for her mother.

Once she finished, she took a step back to look it over.

It was perfect.

She had painted a picture of her mother wearing a long white gown.

Her mother's auburn hair was curled in perfect ringlets around her face.

Her startling green eyes a shade darker than Dakota's.

It would have looked exactly like her mother if not for the pure white angel wings on her back.

Her mother was smiling sadly and offering a hand, around her thin neck was her ruby necklace.

Dakota signed her initials, D.H. , at the bottom in her crappy hand writing.

She knew that the house would be sold soon, but thought she might as well mark it.

She knew the mural would be painted over, but she had painted it so beautifully it would be hard for someone to want to paint over it.

She sighed heavily and put the paint back in it's drawer.

She picked up her backpack and slung it over her shoulder.

She closed the door behind her for the last time as she made her way down the stairs.

She tossed her backpack where her other bag waited by the door.

When she enter the kitchen she noticed she had wasted three hours doing basically nothing.

She searched the cabinets for food, she finally choose a powdered doughnut for her breakfast.

She ate it on the couch while watching T.V.

A loud knock distracted her.

She shut off the program and opened the door.

She was surprised to see Officer Drake standing next to a short young woman.

The lady was smiling widely and running her hands through her short brown hair.

"Dakota this is Marie," He motioned toward the unknown woman, "Marie is taking you to the orphanage."

"Hi, it's a pleasure to meet you," She greeted shaking Dakota's hand. Her hazel eyes shining with happiness.

"Hello," Dakota spoke softly, not quite sure what to make of the lady.

"Where is your stuff?" Marie asked peering over her shoulder into the house.

"Curiosity Killed the cat," Dakota mumbled, slinging her backpack over her shoulder and picking up her bag.

She stepped onto the porch locking the door behind her.

Marie chuckled and grabbed her arm, leading her to a expensive looking car parked by the curb.

Dakota tossed her stuff in the truck before climbing into the passengers side of the car.

She sat trying not to fidget as the older woman watched her.

When Marie started the car Dakota practically sighed in relief, seeing as Marie had to look away to drive.

"How old are you?" Marie asked breaking the comfortable silence that had formed.

"Fourteen," Dakota replied watching as her house disappeared.

"Are you a freshman?" She continued to question the girl though her eyes were focused on the road.

"Senior," Dakota answered, staring out the window blankly.

"So I can assume you are intelligent?" Marie inquired smiling widely at the younger girl.

"I suppose by normal standards I am," Dakota told her, playing with a lock of her hair.

"Hm," Marie stopped the car in front of a building.

It looked old, but was clean and kept.

There was a swing set near the back.

They both climbed out of the car, and made their way to the door.

A sign was hung over the entrance reading, _Fircrest Orphanage_.

There were several children playing tag near the entrance.

A little girl who wasn't looking ran straight into Dakota's legs, falling on her bottom and dirtying her blue sundress.

The small girl looked up at her with tears filled blue eyes.

The little girl hid her face in her hand and started to cry.

"Hey Sweetie. Don't cry," Dakota consoled kneeling beside her. The little girl showed her face again.

"Are you mad at Bell. Bell doesn't like when people are angry with her," The little girl sobbed talking in three person.

Dakota resting a hand on her ebony black hair.

"No I'm not mad at Bell," She offered the little girl a hand.

Bell accepted her help and was soon beaming at her.

Bell quickly grabbed Dakota's hand and led her to the small group of children.

"This is my new friend!" Bell exclaimed, smiling up at Dakota.

"I'm Dakota," She gave them a small wave before looking back down at Bell who was watching her young friends.

"I'm Chris," One of the little boys announced. He had shaggy blond hair and large brown eyes.

"I'm Paige," A little girl with auburn hair shyly whispered, staring at her feet with her wide gray eyes.

"Don't bother making friends, She'll probably just leave like the rest," A little boy growled, glaring at Dakota.

"No she won't!" Bell yelled angrily.

"He's right I might leave soon, but I might not. I don't really know yet, but I would still like to be friends with you all," Dakota said kneeling beside Bell who had plopped down on the ground.

"You gonna be my big sister!" Bell shouted throwing her arms around her neck and hugging her tightly.

Dakota was confused as to how one little girl could be so loud, but hugged her tightly.

"Dakota!" Marie called, "We have to go speak with Mr. Hodgens."

"I'm coming!" Dakota yelled back.

"Does sissy have to go?" Bell asked smiling.

"Yeah, but I'll be back as soon as possible," Dakota walked toward the direction of Marie.

"I already had a worker bring your clothes up to your room," Marie declared as she smiled.

They walked through the empty halls toward the main office, Dakota only half listening as Marie loudly chattered.

When they got there the doors opened to revel a older man with gray hair.

He smiled tiredly at them. Dakota assumed he was Mr. Hodgens.

"Are you Dakota Hudson?" He asked her. She nodded wordlessly, not really feeling like talking. "You will be staying in room 267, on the third floor. Your roommate is Aden Silver."

"A boy?" Dakota questioned, confused as to why she was being roomed with a member of the opposite sex.

"Yes, when I heard your name I assumed you were male, forgive me. For now this is the only available room," Mr. Hodgens said.

Dakota was slightly angry that he had thought she was a guy, but didn't say anything. Her name was commonly a boy's name after all.

"Okay," Dakota replied looking at a portrait on the wall.

It was of an old man with gentle eyes and a wide smile. "Who is he?"

"That's Quillsh Wammy, he is the founder of this one and several other orphanages around the world," Marie informed her smiling, "He is a great man."

"Sounds like it," Dakota replied smiling. It was a fake smile, but it was a smile, "Can I go to my room?"

"Yes, go ahead," Marie dismissed her, turning back to Mr. Hodgens.

"See you later," Dakota called walking from the office.

She wandered around until she found a staircase and made her way to the third floor.

She looked at the signs above each door until she found room 267.

She opened the door and was met with a unusual sight.

Two teenage boys were sitting in front of a television playing video games, while a third was painting on the wall.

They hadn't seemed to notice she was even standing there.

"Hello," She greeted gaining their attention.

"Hey babe. What are you doing here?" One sitting in front of the television wondered. His shaggy black hair hanging in his face.

"Hey, have you seen some dude named Dakota? He should be here soon," The other one asked, he had blond shoulder length hair.

"I'm Dakota," She responded, almost laughing when they jaw dropped, "Which one of you is Aden?"

"I am," The one painting on the wall turned around.

His light brown hair hiding his eyes from sight.

"I'm Dylan," The one with the shaggy black hair told her, smiling widely.

"Nice to meet you," She smiled back at him.

"Hey sweetie, I'm Kendall," The one with the blond hair nodding his head her way while still playing his video game.

She smiled back at him sheepishly.

She looked back at Aden who had began to paint again.

He was drawing what appeared to be a wolf and it was rather good.

She silently walked to his side watching as he painted the wolf's eyes yellow.

"Can you not stare. It's rather rude," Aden scolded looking at her from the corner of his eye.

"I'm sorry. It's just really good," Dakota commented, smiling slightly.

"I know," He returned to his painting, ignoring her now narrowed gaze.

"Well isn't someone sure of himself," She accused.

"And your point?" He asked not even looking her way.

"I bet you twenty bucks that I can paint a better wolf than that," She pulled a twenty from her pocket.

She knew that she shouldn't be betting her money away, but he was just so cocky.

"Deal," He added handing her, his paint brush. She took it and started to paint a wolf right beside it.

She added as much detail as possible, trying to make it better than his.

The biggest difference was her's had red eyes instead of yellow, and she had drawn large black angel wings on hers.

"Wow, dude she's good," Dylan applauded as she stepped away from the wall.

"It's good, but not better than mine," Aden agreed, looking it over.

Dakota frowned, it was obvious his was inferior to her's.

"Dude she beat you," Kendall agreed, glaring playfully at Aden.

It was obvious they were great friends.

"You don't have to give me money. It's doesn't matter to me," Dakota stated as she sat on the bed she assumed was hers considering her bags on the wood floor next to it.

"Here," Aden reached into his pocket and pulled out a wadded up twenty and handing it to her.

"Damn man it was your turn to buy pizza too," Dylan said pouting.

Dakota chuckled and flattened the bill.

"I'll buy," She waved the bill around, smiling.

They looked at her slightly shocked, but then Dylan smiled and threw his arm over shoulder.

"I like you," He stated, gently pressing his lips to her cheek.

"You're not so bad yourself," She smiled and blushed lightly.

Maybe her new life wouldn't be so bad after all.


	3. Friends

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note.**

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 3

**Day 4**

Dakota had become very fond of both Dylan and Kendall.

She considered them to be good friends even though she had only known them a couple days.

They had a bet seeing who could make her fall in love them.

She found it quite funny, even though it should have upset her.

She didn't feel romantically about either of them, and always turned down their advances.

They were always playing video games, which Dakota had taken a liking to.

They usually played zombies games, which Dakota found she loved.

The only problem was Aden seemed to hate Dakota.

She tried to act civil toward him, but he would just glare at her or say a few quick words then make an excuse to leave.

She didn't remember doing anything to make him hate her, except for the bet.

Which she apologized repeatedly for, but he just said, "Yours was better than mine. You won."

It was quickly becoming a problem considering they share a room, and he won't talk to her except to ask or do something.

It was almost midnight and she was sneaking through the empty halls, she knew she would get in trouble if they caught her again.

Something about coming from a boys room at midnight, and how it was inappropriate.

It's not like she was doing anything bad, she had been in Dylan's room playing video games with him and Kendall.

They usually played the games in her and Aden's room, but Aden had complained he was getting a headache and needed silence.

She knew that he would only hate her more if she tried to change his mind, so she just went along with it.

Dakota stopped by the kitchen and searched through the medicine cabinet for Tylenol.

She decided to try to be useful and help him with his headache.

Once she found it she dumped a few into her hand before retrieving a glass of water.

She signed her name onto the list and wrote down the reason.

The workers got angry if there was missing medicine, even if it was just Tylenol.

She knocked softly on her door and opened it to find Aden lying on the floor reading a book with a maroon colored cover.

He didn't even look at her until she sat beside him on the floor.

"I brought you some Tylenol for your headache," She said setting the glass by his side.

"No thank you," He rudely pushed it away.

Dakota sighed and set the glass on his night stand, leaving the white pills beside it.

"If you want them later they're right here," She told him walking over to her backpack and pulling out a pair of pajama pants and a tang top, both black.

She changed shirts not really caring if Aden was in the same room.

With anybody else she would have cared, but Aden never even looked her way when she changed.

If she needed to change her undergarments she would change in the bathroom.

She changed her pants, before turning to see Aden staring at her with a light blush on his face.

"Must you change while I'm in the room?" He asked looking down at his book.

"Well, I didn't expect you to watch," She informed him.

Her face was bright red, partially from embarrassment, partially from anger.

"Well, you are an attractive woman and I was studying you," He defended, his cheeks still crimson.

"Studying me?" She growled, glaring viciously.

He looked slightly taken back, almost as though he didn't expect her to get mad.

"That's not what I meant. I meant that I uhh..." He was searching frantically through his head a socially correct answer.

"It's fine. I'll just change in the bathroom from now on," She mumbled climbing under her covers.

She tried to relax her body so she could sleep, but she felt Aden's eyes on her.

She turned to see his honey gold eyes watching her.

They just sat there staring at one another for at least five minutes.

Dakota realized that Aden was good looking, and if she remembered correctly he thought she was attractive as well.

"Yes?" She asked moving into a sitting position.

"I'm sorry," He apologized out of nowhere.

"For?" She asked blinking tiredly.

"For watching you change and being a jerk to you since you got here. It's wasn't fair of me to judge you before I got to know you," He stated looking at the ground.

Dakota was shocked she hadn't expected him to apologize.

"I'm not normal like the rest of you guys. I'm not social, and tend to get on people's nerves." He gave her a half smile.

"That's okay. The truth is Dylan and Kendall are my first friends. Before I came here I didn't talk to others. I had no friends," Dakota admitted staring at the ceiling as she laid back.

"Do you consider me a friend?" Aden asked, opening the window.

A light breeze blew through the room, ruffling the papers that were sitting on the desk in the corner.

"Only if you want me to," She told him turning on her side to look out the now open window.

It was pitch black out.

There were no clouds, so the stars were easily seen.

The only light was coming from the small lamp beside Aden's bed.

It didn't give much light, it just gave a soft glow to it's surroundings.

"I would like that," He quietly picked up his book again.

"You aren't really reading," Dakota observed smiling. Aden looked at her confused. "There's is no way you can see in this light."

"Figured me out did you?" Aden chuckled. "I was trying to find an excuse to still be awake."

"What do you mean?" Dakota questioned, laying on her stomach.

"I don't sleep and lying awake in the dark gives me headaches," He put the book back on the shelf beside him. Dakota stood and rummaged through her drawer. "What are doing?"

"Looking for something. I thought it was obvious," She grinned pulling out a couple candles. Aden rolled his eyes, still not sure what she was looking for. "There you are," She said pulling out a lighter.

She lit several of then and spread them throughout the room, before shutting off the lamp.

"There you won't be sitting in the dark, and I won't be up all night due to the lamp," She crawled back into bed.

"Thank you," Aden whispered laying in his bed.

Dakota smiled before falling asleep.

**xxxxXXXXxxxx**

"Dakota, get up," Aden said rather loudly shaking her shoulder.

She mumbled something and turned over.

He felt bad because she had just stopped whimpering, but he had to wake her up for her test.

He shook her again laughing when she opened her wide green eyes.

"Why?" She asked, rolling over.

He had to admit she looked really cute, with her blond hair all messy from sleep.

"You suppose to take the IQ test today," He reminded her, chuckling when she jumped out of bed tripping on her blanket and falling on her face.

"Ow," She complained rubbing her forehead. When she pulled her hand away the tips of her fingers were covered in blood. "Where am I bleeding?"

"You just have a small cut on your forehead," He frowned pressing a tissue to it. "All you need is a bandage."

"It hurts," She whined, clearly too tired to do anything about it.

He sighed and led her to their bathroom.

He pulled out the small medical kit and put a bandage on her cut.

"Thanks!" She chirped, smiling brightly at him.

"Anyway shouldn't you be taking your test?" He questioned smiling.

He noticed when she was tired she had less control over her emotions.

She would usually have taken care of the cut herself and silently left for her test, but she was smiling and acting like a normal teenage girl.

"Oh no I'm going to be late!" She exclaimed running from the room.

She didn't realize she was still in pajamas and barefoot until she was already in the office.

It was Marie who giving her the test, and she had asked why she wasn't dressed yet.

"I didn't realize I wasn't dressed yet," Dakota said, looking at her feet sheepishly.

"That's okay. You just need to take a test, it's not that important," Marie consoled her.

She set the eight page test down the test in front of her.

When Dakota was done with the test she rested her forehead, ignoring the slight pain from her cut, and closed her eyes.

She absently drew patterns on her hand with a pen.

She had found the test to be quite easy, having known most the answers.

"You finished really quick! I'll have this graded and then let you know," Marie proclaimed, putting the test in a file.

"Thanks Marie, I think I'll go take a nap," Dakota yawned covering her mouth with her right hand.

"See you soon!" Marie threw her arms around Dakota hugging her tightly.

Dakota froze, still not accustomed to hugging.

She stayed tense until the older woman let her go.

Dakota decided she wasn't tired anymore and wandered the halls.

She had noticed there weren't many teenagers at the orphanage.

Most of the children were between five and ten years old.

There was a total of 37 children here, which would have been considered a lot if it wasn't such a big building.

She was confused as to why she was still sharing a room with Aden, but didn't think much of it anymore since they were friends.

She had traveled to the backyard of the old building, before laying in the grass and watching the clouds roll by.

She found it was quite calming, but was still kind of nervous about her test.

She wasn't sure if she did good or not.

She had found the questions easy, but that didn't mean she got them right.

She tried to completely calm herself, but only half succeeded.

It didn't really matter, because even if she did bad she was still more intelligent than most her age, and any homework would be easy to complete.

She noticed a tree in the corner of the lot. She walked over to it and gripped one of the lower branches.

She pulled herself onto it like she used to when she was younger.

It was harder then she thought it would be considering she wasn't wearing shoes, but she managed.

She swung her legs over the edge and hummed softly to herself.

It was a song her mother used to sing to her when she was younger.

She pushed that thought away realizing she was just dwelling in the past.

She missed her Mother more than anything, but thinking about it continuously just made her heart hurt.

She took a couple deep breaths before humming a different tune.

It was a more upbeat calming song, though her mind was still thinking over the last song.

It was hard for her to keep her mind off it.

"Sissy!" A voice called from below.

She looked down to see Bell searching frantically for her.

Bell didn't even think to look in the tree.

Dakota gracefully jumped down beside Bell scaring the little girl slightly.

Bell smiled when she saw who it was and threw her arms around the older girl.

"Sissy!" Bell shouted, tightening her grip on Dakota.

"Hello Bell," Dakota said pulling away from the small girl. The little girl beamed at her before grabbing the older girl's hand and running down the hall. "Where are we going?"

"Mr. Hodgens wanted to speak with you!" Bell said, speeding up.

Dakota let the small girl drag her through the halls, even though they were going in the wrong direction.

She didn't have the heart to correct her self proclaimed sister.

"Hey Dakota!" A male voice addressed her.

Bell stopped, causing Dakota to run into her lightly.

She apologized and looked for the source, turning to see Dylan standing there with Aden.

"Hey," Dakota smiled, walking toward them. Bell gripped her hand tighter, Dakota looked down at her and was shocked to see she looked terrified. "What's wrong sweetie?"

"He's scary," Bell cried hiding behind her.

"Who?" Dakota inquired kneeling beside the small girl.

"Him," She pointed straight at Aden who had an indifferent look on his face.

"Nah, Aden isn't scary he's my friend," She told her picking Bell up and carrying her to him. He tried to smile at the small girl, but failed and only reinforced the ideal that he was scary. Bell buried her face in Dakota's shoulder. "How can I prove he's not scary?"

"Hold his hand!" Bell motioned toward the boy's arm, while looking up at her self proclaimed sister.

"Okay," Dakota reached out and gripped his hand.

She set Bell down, but didn't let go of Aden's hand.

Aden blushed slightly, but didn't pull away.

Her hand was tiny in comparison to his much larger one.

"Kota! Mr. Hodgens is looking for you!" Kendall stated, appearing out of nowhere.

"Oh yeah I forgot." She let go of Aden's hand. "I have to go, Dylan can you find a video game to play with Bell?"

"Sure babe," He said, grabbing Bell's tiny hand.

Bell smiled widely at him.

"No blood!" Dakota called shooting him a stern look.

Dylan pouted jokingly before leading Bell to her and Aden's room.

Dakota knocked on the door to Mr. Hodgens office.

She waited for a second before knocking a little louder.

"Come in!" Mr. Hodgens called.

Dakota entered shutting the door behind her.

She turned to see the older man holding a file with her name on it.

He pulled out a piece of paper before setting it down and smiling at the newest arrival.

"You called me," Dakota stated plopping down in the seat across from him.

"Your test results are back," Mr. Hodgens told her proudly.

"How did I do?" Dakota asked keeping her expression stoic.

"You have an IQ of over 200," Mr. Hodgens applauded, smiling widely.

He was practically glowing with pride he was so happy.

"I'm going to assume that's good?" Dakota half asked.

"Darling that's amazing!" He exclaimed, "You are a genius!"

"On paper," She corrected, "See this cut on my forehead?" He nodded, "I got it from tripping over my bed sheets. I may be book smart, but you need to know how to socialize to survive in the real world. I'm not going to be sheltered out there like I am here."

"Dear all of the children love you! That must say something!" He said, throwing his hands into the air.

"Because I'm polite, I never raise my voice, and I give the children candy," Dakota stood, her hands on her hips, "I may be smart, but I have a lot to learn before I'm considered a genius."

She turned and walked out without another word.

She had always known she was exceptionally smart, but she wasn't a genius.

She couldn't be, could she?


	4. Closure

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, nor do I own the song feature in this chapter. It is Gaeta's lament sung by Alessandro Juliani who just so happens to be the voice of L in the English dub. I'm not sure what it's from, but it is rather best version I have found on Youtube is L Lawliet singing extended song. I love it and listen to it constantly.**

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 4

**Day 10  
**

Dakota was standing in the pouring rain, allowing herself to be drenched in the cold water.

She had just returned from her mother's funeral.

Not many had been at the cemetery, but Aden and Dylan had joined her so she wouldn't feel alone.

She hadn't spoken to anyone since she got back, and when it started raining she walked out of the building.

The others had tried to get her to come back inside, but she wouldn't even look at them.

She just stood there staring at the darkened sky.

Aden had stood there with her for as long as possible, but he became too cold.

He seemed to be the only one who knew that this was her way of grieving and if the drug her back inside she would never let go.

Her clothes were completely soaked, and her fingertips and toes were beginning to feel numb.

She knew that was a bad sign, but found she couldn't care less.

Tears fell from her eyes and mixed with the seemingly endless rain.

She felt as though her heart was being ripped apart from the inside.

She was remembering all the happy times she spent with her mother.

All the sweets they would make, and the animals Dakota always seemed to be bringing home.

Her body shook, but not from the cold.

She was lightly talking to herself, but no one could understand what she was saying.

She was just mumbling quietly.

"I'm sorry I couldn't protect you," She whispered to the wind. She knew wherever her mother was, she was listening. "I'm sorry I didn't say goodbye."

A sob escaped her lips as her legs collapsed from under her.

She fell onto her hands and knees, sobbing violently.

She punched the ground with all her strength, and kept doing so until she split the skin on her knuckles.

The blood mixed with rain and dripped to the already muddy ground.

She let out a bloodcurdling scream that startled everyone inside.

No one had ever seen anybody break down like this, and that was saying a lot seeing as everyone at the orphanage had lost their parents.

Aden was the only one would understood, seeing as he had lost his mother as well.

He knew Dakota hadn't been ready for that, she wasn't ready to be alone.

She had still been a child inside, who looked forward to seeing their mother everyday.

He knew the green eyed teenager needed time before she could become calm again.

She was going to mourn until she wasn't sad any longer.

She was hurting, and had no one to take care of her.

He watched her punch the ground until she bled.

He wanted to console her, but knew she needed to help herself this time.

She would never get over it if someone tried to comfort her.

She needed closure.

"I'm sorry," Dakota repeated over and over until her voice was strained and hoarse.

Her tears still ran as the sky blackened.

It was dark, probably midnight.

She had been standing out in the rain for hours.

She knew she was overreacting, but couldn't seem to make herself care.

She stood and moved her wet hair out her eyes.

Her tears hadn't stopped, but she felt as though her mind was numbing. "I thought the funeral was supposed to give closure not cause more pain. Mother's death wasn't right. It wasn't her time, I'm sure of it. I know she's in Heaven, but why did she have to die? I wasn't ready to let go yet. I miss her."

She looked back up to the sky.

She closed her eyes and let the water calm her.

She had always loved the smell of the rain.

It almost smelled as though it would remain pure and untouched for eternity, unlike the rest of the world.

She began to sing softly to herself.

"Alone she sleeps in the shirt of man,

With my three wishes clutched in her hand."

She gripped the material over her heart tightly.

"The first that she be spared the pain,

That comes from a darkened laughing rain."

She had to take a deep breath before continuing.

"When she finds love,

May it always stay true.

This I beg for the second wish I made too.

But wish no more,

My life you can take."

She wiped away her tears, and sat up.

"To have her please just one day wake.

To have her please just one day wake.

To have her please just one day wake."

Her voice was quiet and a little rough from crying, but still beautiful.

In the distance, beyond the clouds, was clear sky.

She knew that one day it wouldn't hurt as much anymore, but it was going to be awhile before that happened.

She wiped her tears away with her soaked sleeve and pulled her dripping wet hair into a ponytail.

Her fingers wrapped around the small gem hanging from the chain around her neck.

It provided her with a small amount of comfort, knowing that the necklace had once belonged to her beloved mother.

It wasn't the same as having her mother, but it gave her a connection with her past.

And while she wanted to forget the pain of losing her mother, she didn't want to forget the good memories and was glad to have something of hers.

She turned and walked back calmly into the building.

Everybody had gone to bed, and she was surprised to find Aden sitting against the wall his eyes closed.

She wasn't sure if her was asleep, so she sat next to him pulling her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them.

She leaned back against the wall waiting for him to either wake or notice her presence.

Aden's eyes opened reveling his bright gold eyes.

He blinked in surprised at the sight in front of him.

Dakota was watching him with her jade colored eyes, while sitting in a puddle of rain water.

He assumed she was waiting for him.

He grabbed a nearby towel and draped it over her shoulders.

She smiled tiredly and rested her head on his shoulder.

He tensed at first, not really sure how to respond, but them wrapped an arm around her shaking shoulders.

She instinctively snuggled into his warmth, shivering slightly.

"I miss her," She whispered so quietly he almost missed it.

Her expression was calm instead of pained like he expected.

He knew she had gotten her closure.

"I know," He said pulling her into his arms.

Her heavy eyes closed and she fell unconscious in his arms.

He smiled and lifted her off the ground carrying her to their room.

He found she was extremely light.

He laid her down in her bed, and lightly shook her shoulder.

Her sleepy eyes opened.

"You should shower and change," He handed her her old backpack.

She nodded and stumbled sleepily towards the bathroom.

She stepped in the shower, turning on the warm water.

She sighed contently as it warmed her freezing skin.

She gently ran soap over the cuts on the back of her hands, cleaning them.

The wounds burned as the warm water and soap washed away the bloody and dirt.

She rinsed the dirt out of her hair, before washing it.

When she was done she wrapped a towel around her petite body and changed into her pajamas.

She was wearing a black t-shirt and a pair of black shorts.

She carefully wrapped her knuckles, before existing the small bathroom.

When she walked back in the room to find Aden had lit the candles and was laying in his bed.

His breathing was even and his eyes were closed, so she assumed he had falling asleep.

She blew out several of the candles before leaving the room.

She wandered the halls until she found Bell's room.

She opened the door to find Bell sitting on her bed awake.

"Why aren't you asleep Bell?" Dakota asked entering the small girl's room.

Bell jumped out of bed and threw her arms around Dakota's waist burying her face in the older girl's stomach.

Tears stained Dakota's shirt as she soothed the young girl's hair.

"What is it?" She questioned kneeling beside the small girl.

She wasn't sure what she had done to make Bell cry yet again.

"I was worried about you!" She wailed hugging Dakota tighter.

"I'm fine now sweetie. Please forgive me for worrying you. I didn't mean to," Dakota lifted the little girl into her arms.

"You were so sad!" Bell exclaimed.

"I just miss my Mother," She mumbled carrying Bell to her bed.

She set her down on the covers.

"Your mother is happy. I'm sure of it. All good people go to heaven, and she wouldn't want you to worry about her," Bell told the older girl as she crawled underneath the covers.

"I know, I just need a little longer to get used to the ideal of her being gone," Dakota smiling at the fact Bell was doing everything to comfort her.

"But she's not!" Bell exclaimed.

"What do you mean?" Dakota questioned.

"She's not really gone. As long as you don't forget her she will always be with you," The little girl yawned tiredly.

"Thank you Bell," Dakota whispered seconds before Bell fell asleep. "Night Sweetie."

Dakota kissed the young girl's forehead, and switched off the light.

She began to wander the halls again, peeking in the room's of children she was fond of.

None were awake which didn't surprise her considering it was 2 am.

She wasn't sure when it had gotten so late, but continued to walk the halls anyway.

She found the darkened library and switched on a lamp.

It gave everything a nice glow to it similar to the candles in her own room.

The library was probably the biggest room excluding the dining room.

She searched the shelves for a book that she hadn't read already and was surprised to find a book on the detective L.

It was written about his first cases and would have been confusing to anyone but Dakota.

She wasn't sure why this book was in an orphanage, but was glad it was here to read.

She found the cases he had worked on interesting and was completely mesmerized by it.

She was a quick reader so if she tried she could have it finished before the other started to wake.

She didn't feel tired, though she should after such a long day.

Last time she slept, she woke up sweating and had woken up Aden with her screaming.

She felt bad considering Aden barely slept anyway.

On the nights he was awake they would play card games or talk, on the nights he was asleep she would read in the library or cook sweets for the children.

Her body was growing weak from the lack of rest, and she would fall often.

Dakota knew she had to get some sleep soon, or she would start passing out from exhaustion.

She also knew it would have to wait for tomorrow, because tonight would just bring nightmares.

_Else Where_

"That girl interests me," A teenage boy stated, eating a cupcake.

His unruly black hair hanging in his eyes.

"Well, she is very pretty, Master L" The older man by his side observed his smooth English accent easy to detect in his deep tone.

"No, Watari, that's not the reason," L defended taking a drink of his sugared tea, before adding a couple more cube of sugar. His face had a slightly embarrassed look on it due to the Watari's statement. He did consider the girl to be very pretty. "She seems to be incredibly intelligent."

"Yes, she seems to have matched your IQ score," Watari pondered.

"Her Mother died in that car accident didn't she?" The detective asked.

"Yes, the coffin had to be nailed shut due to extensive damage to the woman's face," The old man mentioned handing a ice cream cone to the L, "The funeral was today. It seems the girl didn't take it well."

"What do you mean?" L asked between bites of his ice cream.

"She stood in the rain for four hours, talking to herself. No one could convince her to come back inside, not even her roommate, Aden Silver," Watari stated.

"Aden, is that the boy who has been chosen?" The boy asked biting into a chocolate chip cookie.

"Yes, he is," The man replied.

"I think this girl would also make a good candidate," The boy smiled sweetly, albeit awkwardly as he finished his cookie.

"I believe so as well, but she just lost her Mother. I'm not so sure she could handle the stress," The man responded a worried look on his face.

"She has just as much if not more potential than Aden," L was saying his thoughts aloud again, "Besides I will call my contacts and make the transition as easy as possible for her."

"Do you plan on showing her your face?" The old man asked worry evident in his voice.

"I was considering it. It's only a two percent chance she's is an enemy, and a very low two percent at that. Maybe it would be good for me to meet the rest of my successors," He walked over to the window and watched as the rain poured from the sky.

It was the middle of the night, but his body was unaccustomed to sleep.

He knew he needed a certain amount of sleep if he didn't plan on dying, but he found it hard to fall asleep when he knew he would just have nightmares.

He wanted to meet this girl who seemed to be as troubled as himself.

She was incredibly intelligent, and would be considered incredibly beautiful if not for the apathetic look that seemed ever present in all her pictures.

She seemed to be wearing black, but he was sure she wasn't Gothic for she didn't wear as much eye makeup as most goths and her hair was her natural color instead of her dying it black.

He knew there was something special about her, for the bells got louder when he looked at her picture.


	5. My Family

Death: I decided to have Mello do the disclaimer today, because my disclaimers are all boring T-T

Mello: Why me *Breaks off a bit of chocolate and eats it* I'm not even in this story yet.

Death: Because Matt said he was busy.

Mello: Oh that makes sense *About to do disclaimer* Wait does that mean you would rather have Matt do the disclaimer?

Death: Yep he's cute, and he plays video games!

Mello: Well I eat chocolate!

Death: You lost give up and do the disclaimer!

Mello: Deathcomessoon doesn't own Death Note nor the characters of Death Note *Rolls his eyes and eats chocolate*

Dakota: She owns me and the other OCs though.

Death: Hope you like the chapter :P

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 5

**Day 15**

Dakota was sitting on her found favorite spot in her tree.

Her legs swinging over the side of the branch while she stared up at the clear sky.

She leaned back against the trunk as she listened to the others call her name.

Normally she would've answered, but today was her last day here and she didn't want to see anyone.

Many would think she would want to say goodbye, but she didn't want to see the crying face of her self proclaimed sister.

She would miss Bell more than she originally thought she would.

She didn't want to leave, but she knew she didn't have a say in the matter.

Nobody would even tell her where she was going.

A tear rolled down her face, that wasn't unnoticed by her.

She wiped it away confused as to why she was crying.

She had told herself not to get to close to the others, she knew she would have to leave.

She had become as close as friends as possible with the others, though she hadn't thought it was possible.

One of the yelling voices distracted her.

"Kota, at least come out so we can say goodbye!" Kendall shouted, "You should know you're no going to be leaving alone! Aden is leaving to!"

Dakota jumped down from the tree landing on the balls of her feet.

Kendall smiled as he saw her.

"What did you say?" She questioned walking to his side.

"Aden is going with it. He was just told by Mr. Hodgens," Kendall humored, smiling at her.

"I'm confused. I don't want to go," Dakota grumbled, sitting in the long grass.

"And I don't want you to go, nobody does. Now," He said, picking her up by her waist and throwing her over his shoulder, "We go to you and Aden's Farewell party."

"Kendall I swear if you do not put me down I will kick you," Dakota growled, squirming around.

"If I set you down you'll run again," He chuckled.

"Can you at least move your hand," Dakota demanded smacking his hand where it was conveniently placed on her butt.

He laughed and tightened his hold on her waist.

He carried Dakota until they got to the dining room where everyone was waiting.

She heard laughter from everyone as soon as they entered the room.

Kendall set her down in a chair, and moved to take his own seat.

There were several people including all the teenagers and some of the children.

"Sissy look what I got you!" Bell informed hoisting herself onto Dakota's lap.

She opened her small hands to revel a necklace with a small bear charm on it.

"Thank you Bell," She smiled putting it on. She pulled a small purple stuffed bear out of her back pocket and handed it to Bell. "Aden and I got this for you. So you can remember us."

"Thanks sissy," Bell beamed throwing her arms around Dakota's neck, "Thanks Aden!"

"Your welcome, sweetie," Dakota said her heart growing heavy.

"Here me and Dylan chipped in to buy this for you," Kendall tossed her a poorly wrapped present.

Dakota unwrapped it quickly reveling a black iPod.

She smiled and gave Kendall and Dylan a quick hug.

"Thank you guys so much," She said giving them both a peck on the cheek.

"Welcome," Dylan blushed a bright crimson color.

"Yo, Aden your turn!" Kendall pulled the anti social boy from his corner.

"Here!" Bell exclaimed handing him a wrapped package.

He opened it to revel a black and red sweater.

Dakota had brought it, but Bell had picked it out.

"Thank you Bell. Dakota," He said smiling softly.

"Welcome!" Bell said pecking his cheek.

He smiled and gave her a slightly awkward hug.

"Here man," Dylan said handing him a couple cds.

It was Three Days Grace, Bring Me The Horizon, Linkin Park, and Slipknot.

"Thanks," He echoed sitting down in a nearby chair.

"Here," Kendall said throwing him a package.

He opened and and smiled when he saw the book he had been wanting to read.

"Guys I'm getting a headache I think I'm going to go climb the tree again. If you need me that's where I'll be," Dakota set Bell down on the table, and moved to leave the room, but was stopped when Kendall jumped in front of her.

"You haven't even eaten any cake yet!" Kendall pouted.

"Yeah me and Kendall made it from scratch!" Dylan exclaimed throwing his hands into the air. Aden looked at him suspiciously, "Okay I may have gotten some help from the cook."

"Okay, I'll have one piece. But then I'm going outside," She said sitting on her chair.

"Yay!" Bell giggled sitting on her lap once more.

"Here you go," Dylan said sitting a piece in front of her.

She took an experimental bite, before smiling and giving them a thumps up.

xxxxXXXxxxx

She was packing her things into a bag while helping Aden pack his things.

He had issues with folding he would rather just stuff everything into his bag.

While she would fold and make sure it was neat.

"What's this?" Dakota turned to see Dylan was holding up a pair of her lacy black panties.

"I should have known you would go through my underwear drawer," Dakota complained snatching her panties away and hiding them in her bag.

"I was kidding, besides it's sexy," He pressed stepping toward her.

Her eyes narrowed as she punched him in the arm.

He winched and took a step back.

For a girl Dakota could really hit hard.

"Calm down. I'm sorry!" He defended putting his hands up in the air.

"I know. Sorry for hitting you so hard," She sat on her bed pulling her knees up to her chest. "I'm just feeling really weird today."

She laid back staring at the ceiling.

She covered her face with her arm and tried to calm herself.

"It's okay I understand," He sat beside her. "Everyone here will miss you."

"I don't understand why. I mean I'm sarcastic and cynical," She bitterly stated, "And as you've seen I'm not the nicest person."

"Well friends know how to accept their friends, despite their bad qualities," He comforted pulling her arm from her face. "And you're not a bad person. You're not mean anyway."

"Thanks," She threw her arms around his neck and tightly hugged him.

His cheeks turned a bright crimson.

After she finished packing she hurried to the library wanting to read for a while.

She was surprised to see Mr. Hodgens looking through the books.

"Hello," She softly spoke walking to his side.

"Oh Dakota. Hello," He greeted, "I noticed you have been reading L's cases a lot lately."

"I really love reading about him. He is a great detective," She commented, picking up her favorite dog eared book.

"Why don't you take it with you when you leave," He offered, smiling at her.

"Could I?" She pleaded, looking at him with her large green eyes.

"Of course," He assured.

"Thank you," She gripped the book to her chest, "Do you know when me and Aden are leaving?"

"In about an hour at most," He told her looking up at the library clock.

"I really appreciate everything you have done for me," Dakota reached out to shake his hand and received a hug instead.

"It's nothing Darling," He assured her, resting his hand on her shoulder, "Take care of yourself."

"I will," She promised.

"Are you done packing?" He inquired turning back to the shelf.

"Yes, I finished a while ago," She informed him, opening her book and skimming the pages.

She already knew the book by heart, but still liked to read it.

"Here," Mr. Hodgens handed her a black box with a red ribbon tried around the middle, "This is a parting gift from me."

She carefully untied the ribbon around the middle and pulled off the top of the box.

Inside was a midnight black dress with lace trimming, and a new pair of black converse.

"I noticed those shoes of yours were wearing out, and Marie helped me pick out the dress," He smiled and was surprised when she hugged him.

"Thank you. I really like it," She said, releasing him.

"I'm glad," He silently walked from the room.

Dakota grabbed the box and her book and hurried to pack them with her stuff.

She was surprised that someone she met only weeks ago would give her something so nice.

"The car that that is taking us is here," A voice broke through her thoughts as she zipped up her backpack.

Aden was leaning against the door, with his bag in hand.

Dakota gathered her stuff before heading out to the waiting car with Aden.

They were both surprised to see it was a expensive looking car instead of a crappy one.

Once again Dakota wondered where they were going.

The driver stepped out and opened the door for them.

Dakota entered first, wondering why the driver was so proper.

"I'm confused," She whispered to Aden, "Where are we going? Did we get adopted or something?"

He just shrugged unsure himself, and looked out the window.

She followed his example and stared out her own window, wondering what life had planned for her next.

**xxxxXXXxxxx**

"Master L, they are on their way," Watari informed the teenage boy setting a cup of tea down by his side.

"Yes Watari. Does the driver have their passports?" L inquired. The old man nodded and disappeared into the kitchen. "Good."

"Master L, did you call the house to let Rogar know about the new arrivals?" Watari questioned.

"Hmm, it must have slipped my mind. Could you do that for me?" L asked taking a sip of his tea.

"Yes," Watari pulled a cell phone from his pocket.

"And let him know these two will go by the names A and D," L told him as he walked to look out the window. "I'll be looking forward to our meeting D."


	6. The Trip

Death: I have L today to do the disclaimer!

L: Yes, I will be doing the disclaimer.

Death: Why do you talk like that?

L: I do not understand what you mean.

Death: You... Never mind. I find it cute anyway.

L: *Blushes* That comment was deeply appreciated.

Death: Aww, you blushed! *Tackles him*

D: I hate to remind you, but this an LXOC story. So I would be happy if you would GET OFF MY MAN! *Attacks Death*

L: Hmm, I believe this is a fight over me. I should get to the disclaimer. Deathcomessoon doesn't own Death Note nor the characters from Death Note.

D: Why did you write this if you were just going to hit on my boyfriend! *Punches*

Death: I apologized! And you haven't even met him yet! *Dodges kick*

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 6

**Day 16**

Dakota had fallen asleep in the plane to Seattle, she was resting her head on Aden's shoulder.

He didn't mind though it was a little uncomfortable.

He didn't want to wake her seeing as it took hours for her to fall asleep and that was with the aid of sleeping pills.

She was terrified of flying and on top of that she was worried because they still had no ideal where they were going.

Dakota let out a small cry and dropped the book she had been so desperately clutching in her hands.

Trying not to move much, he picked up the book she dropped.

She leaned her back against the seat and let out a low scream.

She awoke with a start slapping a hand over her mouth, but it was too late and the passengers nearby were staring with a concerned look on their faces.

Normally she would have said something to calm them, but she was dripping sweat and they probably wouldn't have believed her.

She suddenly unbuckled and ran to the bathroom, ignoring the stewardess who were telling her to sit back down.

She threw open the door to the bathroom and emptied the contents of her stomach into the toilet.

"Oh hun," A woman mumbled as she enter the bathroom and shut the door behind her. She was a tall woman with long blond hair pulled into a neat bun. Her name tag read, Stacy. She knelled beside Dakota, and rubbed her back soothingly. "What's wrong?"

"It was just a nightmare," Dakota whispered resting her head on her folded arms.

Stacy's dull gold colored eyes seemed to lack the intelligence that Aden's had.

Yet they softened towards the young girl who was now washing her mouth out with water.

She gargled and spit then repeated.

Stacy dug a washcloth out from under the sink and wet it.

She dabbed Dakota's forehead softly.

"Dakota, are you all right?" Aden called, standing outside the door.

"I'm fine," She said, looking at the older woman.

"Here sweetie, I hope you feel better," Stacy handed her the washcloth.

Aden slipped in through the door after Stacy left, not caring that he was in a woman's bathroom.

He looked at her with sympathy in his gold eyes.

He set his hand on her back ignoring when she tensed.

He brought her toothbrush with him and gave it to her.

She took it and mumbled a thanks before scrubbing out her mouth.

He stood by her the entire time, just in case she needed him.

He worried about her constantly.

Most would think they were dating, but he treated her as though she was his sister.

He knew that she needed someone to care for her, and she knew he needed family.

So a silent agreement past between them and they became brother and sister.

Though she kept things from him, like her past and what her nightmares were about.

"I'm so sick of these nightmares. Actually it's not even different nightmares, it's just the same one over and over again. Each time I know it's a dream, but I can't wake up. Everything's so vivid and real," She was looking at his but it was as though she didn't even seeing something else.

"You need to let go of your past," He replied, gripping her hand and leading her out to their seats.

"I'm not ready yet," She whispered, mostly to herself, as she looked out the window.

She leaned back and looked up at the starry sky.

All the stars were bright and twinkling.

She considered the possibility that her mother was one of them looking down at her, but the logical part of her told her is wasn't possible.

The rest of the plane ride went by in silence, as Dakota refused to fall asleep and instead listened to the iPod Dylan and Kendall had gotten her.

She searched for her book and was surprised to find it under her seat.

Once at the airport they were surprised to find they were taking another plane, but this time to England.

"Why are we going to England?" Dakota wondered aloud.

"I don't know, but the driver already purchased are tickets, and I have our passports," He stated pulling them from his bag.

Once on the plane they found their seats and sat with Aden closest to the window.

The knew they were in for a long flight, but Dakota refused to fall asleep again.

She thought she saw Stacy, but quickly brushed away the thought.

It couldn't be that much of a coincident right?

She settle down into her seat and put in her headphones, blaring rock music.

She was able to block out everyone and to everyone else it appeared as though she had fallen asleep.

She waited until everyone else fell asleep and pulled out her book and started reading.

She had read it over and over, but found each time she found things she didn't noticed the first time.

She looked around to make sure everyone was asleep before pulling her legs onto her seat and crossing them.

She knew how to act in public and how not to.

She knew that she would be considered weird if she sat like this constantly.

It didn't matter to her, but she didn't want to embarrass Aden, who was awkward enough on his own.

He didn't need her attracting attention.

She sighed heavily and looked out the window where the dawn was breaking.

She wished she had someone to watch it with, because watching it alone just made her feel lonely.

She brushed away that thought knowing it would get her nowhere.

She began to read her book again, wishing she could know more about this mysterious detective.

She wondered why he was so desperate to keep his identity a secret.

Sure he had plenty of enemies, but he could hire body guards.

She noticed she had wrapped her fingers around the tear shaped ruby that hung around her neck.

She released her tight grip and made her way to the bathroom.

She splashed her face with cold water and quickly brushed her teeth.

She pulled her golden hair into a messy ponytail, keeping it from hanging in her eyes like it usually did.

Once back at her seat she found Aden was awake, and reading the book he had brought with him.

Dakota took her seat and began humming to herself.

It attracted the attention of others, but she was way too tired to care what people who she would never see again thought of her.

"The plane will be landing in 1 hour," The pilot said over the speaker.

"Aden?" Dakota said poking his arm.

"Yes?" He asked looking up from his book.

"I'm nervous," She admitted, pulling her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them.

"Don't be," Aden set his book down, "I'll be with you the whole time."

He wrapped his arms around her shoulders, and pulled her head down to rest on his shoulder.

She tensed at first, but relaxed and closed her eyes.

Aden wasn't sure if she was asleep, until her book slipped through her fingers again.

He set it down on the arm of her chair and soothingly rubbed her back, hoping that the nightmare wouldn't reappear.

She needed sleep if she was going to make it through the day, which he had a feeling would be longer than they both thought.

He wasn't sure if she could have handled everything on her own.

It was probably for the best that he was there with her, though he would miss the orphanage which was the only home he ever had.

xxxxXXXxxxx

"Master L their flight should be landing soon. Should I have Roger go pick them up?" Watari questioned setting down a chocolate cheesecake by L's side.

"Yes, Watari. I think that would be best. We should leave too, if we expect to get there by night fall," L replied in between bites of the delicious food.

He had an extreme sweet tooth and practically refused to eat anything that wasn't sweet.

"That sounds about right, but are you positive you want to reveal your face?" Watari asked worried.

"I'm positive. As I have said it is a very low chance D is an enemy or spy, and A has been living at Fircrest Orphanage his entire life. I'm sure I would have been told if there was any chance he would turn against us," L answered completely sure of himself.

"There is something about D that you're not telling me is there not?" Watari said sitting beside him.

"Yes, there is something familiar about her. I am hoping by meeting her I can figure it out," L looked down at the file he had been previously reading.

It was a case on D's mother, he suspected her death was foul play.

There was something off about her autopsy report, it was missing some vital information.

"Their plane just landed," Watari informed him handing him a cell phone he had never seen before.

'Stacy' or rather Halle Bullock had just sent a text to L, letting him know everything had went as planned and both of his newest successors were safe.

Though she reported that D had woken up screaming from a nightmare that ended up making her physically sick.

"I believe D needs to see a psychologist about her nightmares," L mentioned standing. He wondered what could be so bad that it would make someone throw up, maybe he would get the chance to question her himself. "Did Roger inform my other successors?"

"I believe he did," Watari stated packing L's thing for the trip back home.

"How did they take it?" L inquired.

"They didn't seem to think much of it," Watari shut the main laptop and hid it in a suitcase.

He gathered up the files spread across the desk and neatly stacked them.

"Interesting, I think they will be shocked once A and D get there," L said smirking at the thoughts of his successors.

xxxxXXXxxxx

Dakota shot up in her seat, realizing she had fallen asleep.

Even in such a short time the nightmares still managed to plague her thoughts.

It had been the same one she had dreamed for months.

They existed the plane soon after, Dakota had to make sure she had her book, and were now waiting for whoever was supposed to pick them up.

Dakota was extremely nervous, while Aden was managing to keep his cool.

Someone tapped on Dakota's shoulder and she turned to see a guy in his 60's.

He had pure white hair and a frown on his face.

He was holding a sign that said A & D on it.

"Excuse me, are you Dakota Hudson and Aden Silver?" He questioned, moving to stand in front of them.

"Yes," Aden answered moving to stand in front of Dakota.

This man didn't seem very kind, and Aden's protective nature took over.

"Ah, well I'm here to take you to Wammy's House," He said leaning down to pick up the bags. "I'm Mr. Roger."

"Nice to meet you," Dakota replied leaning around Aden to smile at the old man.

He didn't return the smile he just stood there staring at them.

"I should also inform you, that you are not to use your real names outside the orphanage. No matter how much you trust them. You are to be called A," He pointed at Aden, "And D."

"We understand," Aden crossed his arms.

"Okay let's go," Mr. Roger said in his low tone, leading them out the entrance and to a car.

It was extremely expensive looking.

Dakota climbed in, sitting as close as possible to Aden, who didn't mind since she was obvious overwhelmed.

"Our new life," She whispered, leaning against him.

"Yes, this is the beginning," He stated looking out the window.


	7. Wammy's

**This chapter was written right after I asked about the Wammy boys ages. So I ended up with Matt being 14, Mello being 13, and Near being 11. Mello acts like an arse in this entire chapter, but it was just my first impression of him. I will make him better later. L isn't in this one, and I know it's probably bugging you guys, but I promise he will be entering the picture soon.**

Death: Today I think I will have Near do the disclaimer.

Near: I think that is for the best.

Death: You talk just like L does.

Near: I know *Panda smile*

Death: You are so cute!

Near: *Rolls his eyes* Deathcomessoon does not own Death Note, nor does she own the Characters. If she did Mello, L, and Matt would not have died, but she doesn't and they did so...

Death: Way to make things awkward.

Near: That tends to happen.

Death: Still awkward...

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 7

**Day 16**

Dakota was sitting in the back seat of the car with her legs crossed and her head leaning back against the expensive leather seat.

She was slightly uncomfortable with wearing skinny jeans for such a long car ride.

She was watching as the buildings of the new country whipped by quickly.

She had never even left the state back in America, and now she was going to be living in England.

She was pleased that this country was where she was staying.

Dakota was very intelligent, but always had trouble learning different languages. She had only been able to learn Spanish and French.

It had taken forever for her to learn the pronunciation of the words in the French language, but she had done it eventually. She could now speak fluently in french, but she still stumbled over certain words in Spanish. She knew enough to have a conversation, but she probably wouldn't be able to travel to Mexico.

Aden was laying with his head resting on her thigh, he had fallen asleep a little over thirty minutes before.

Dakota didn't mind seeing as they had been riding in the car for over an hour, and she was growing tired herself.

She leaned her head against the cool glass of the window noting that the longer they drove the less buildings she saw..

Soon where the buildings had been there was large grassy fields spotted with cows and sheep.

Dakota's eyelids were growing heavy, but widened considerably when she heard the sound of screeching tires.

She turned her head just in time to see a car heading straight for them.

She shoved Aden roughly to the other side of the car, and jumped to join him.

He had woken just as the other car crashed into them. The car flipped into the air landing on it's roof.

Dakota cried out as she shielded Aden's face with her arms, seeing as he had been facing towards the point of impact, and allowed the glass and debris to slash through the thin sleeves of her black shirt.

She felt a sharp pain in her middle of her lower back as the car stopped moving entirely.

She reached back to feel a piece of hot metal stuck deeply in her flesh.

Dakota wrapped her fingers around it and gave it a small tug, giving a loud yelp at the sharp pain.

She cursed quietly under her breath when it didn't come out, and tried again, this time tugging roughly almost desperately.

She succeeded this time, but pulling it out seemed to be a mistake as the blood began to rapidly pour from the deep gash and stain the dark material of her jeans.

Aden gently pulled her into his arms as he saw the crimson dripping onto the leather interior of the car.

Silent tears were running down her face, going for the most part, unnoticed by both parties.

The salt from the tears burned slightly as they dripped onto her wounds.

Aden raised his sneaker and kicked the tinted glass window of the car.

It took him a couple tries before the glass shattered.

He lifted her through the newly made hole and set her down on the concrete of the street before crawling through himself.

He had managed to get only small cuts due to Dakota's quick reaction to the accident.

Dakota's eyes were closing, as he called out for help.

She reached for his hand, holding it tightly, as her heart tried it's hardest to continue beating.

Her small hand felt like ice against his warm skin.

"Dakota stay awake!" He shouted shaking her shoulders roughly.

"Why?" She whispered, her small body shaking with blood loss.

"We're here," He said, his voice not longer frantic.

_What?_ She thought looking around, _where?_.

Dakota found her eyes were closed and opened them.

She looked herself over for injuries, but couldn't find any.

"What happened?" She asked, looking to his calm face.

"You fell asleep and started to scream again," He told her worry evident in his shining gold eyes.

"I was sleeping?" She questioned confused.

Her dream had been so vivid this time she actually had thought she was dying.

"Yeah. What it that nightmare again?" He asked, patting her head softly like he would a dog.

"No, it was different this time. We were in a car accident and I had been injured badly. I was laying on the pavement next to you, and then I closed my eyes," Dakota mumbled, resting her right hand over her heart.

She almost smiled when she felt it's steady beat.

The dream, no, nightmare had really gotten to her.

The car pulled up to a large Gothic style gate where it stopped and waited for it to open.

The exterior of the building matched the style of the gate that surrounded the grounds.

It was beautifully built and had probably six stories to it.

Most of the windows had midnight black or maroon curtains blocking the view inside the building.

Dakota's hand tightened around Aden's, as the car rolled to a stop.

The second Dakota stepped out of the vehicle, it was as though she had stepped into a fog.

A sharp pain ripped through her head.

Her vision blurred as her legs shook under her weight.

She suddenly was falling toward the ground.

"Dakota!" Aden yelled as he caught her.

She looked up at him, but she stayed silent.

She was too busy trying figure out which one of the five Aden's was the real one.

She knew they weren't really there, but she couldn't help reaching up to touch his face.

Her hand went right through him.

She furrowed her blond brows and and tried again, this time her fingertips actually making contact with his face.

He lifted the petite girl into his arms, and carried her toward Mr. Roger.

He had one arm wrapped around her back and the other under her knees.

"Where is her room?" Aden asked shifting her weight in his arms.

"Follow me," Mr. Roger said, walking into the building.

Aden silently followed him, making sure not to lose him in the empty halls.

It was hard to keep up with him, while carrying Dakota, but he managed.

She curled up against his chest unsuccessfully trying to ignore the spinning room.

She closed her eyes, and tried to figure out what made her so sick.

She felt Aden lower her to a soft surface, but didn't open her eyes.

He sat by her side and slipped his hand into hers.

"Yo Roger. Is that chick okay?" A male voice asked from the doorway.

"I'm fine," She mumbled opening her eyes and sitting up. "I'm just dizzy."

Aden was sitting by her side, his eyes narrowed dangerously at a boy who was standing by the door.

The boy's green eyes were hidden by a pair of bright orange goggles.

He ran a gloved hand through his reddish brown locks.

His outfit consisted of a tan vest over a black and white striped shirt, plain jeans, and a pair of black combat boots.

"Yo, I'm Matt or M," He said walking to the side of the bed. He looked around the room. "I guess it's true. L did decorate this room for you."

"I'm D. This is A," Dakota pointed to Aden, who was still glaring at the boy, "What did you mean by L decorated this room?"

Matt got a look on his face like he just let a big secret slip.

His green eyes widened almost noticeably under his goggles and he got an embarrassed smile on his face.

"Well, I should go! Nice to meet you D!" He called practically running from the room.

"Well that was different," Aden laughed standing up.

"I will have a maid deliver your things to your room later," Mr. Roger shut the door behind him as he left.

Dakota took this chance to look around the room, on the wall above her bed the was a large D in old English font.

The thick comforter on her bed was midnight black while her pillow cases were white.

There were two wood doors, one she knew led to the hall, the other she assumed led to a bathroom.

There a desk in the corner that looked exactly like the one that had been in her art room at home.

Everything about it was the same, down to every last drop of paint.

She walked over to it and looked through the drawers suspiciously, all of her art supplies was in it.

All of the drawings she had pulled off her walls, were in the drawers.

"Wow those are good," Aden said looking over her shoulder.

"I drew them," Dakota said lifting one up. She pointed to the lower right corner where she always signed her initials. "See."

"This L person must really like you if he brought this here for you," He said looking through more of the drawings. He found a picture of Dakota and her Mother, and pulled it out. "Who is this?"

"That was my Mother," She said, gently taking the picture from him and putting it in her nightstand.

She didn't want to look at it, not yet at least.

"She was beautiful," He said sitting in the chair by the desk.

"Yes, she was," Dakota said smiling fondly.

She laid back on her bed and stared at her ceiling, her head still slightly spinning.

Aden laid beside her on the medium sized bed.

They were both staring at the ceiling silently, when someone knocked on the door.

Aden got up to answer it.

"Yes?" He questioned, holding the door open.

Standing there was a boy, twirling a piece of his paper white hair around his finger.

He was wearing a pair of pure white pajamas. His dark gray eyes immediately went to Dakota.

"I should go find my room." Aden told her, leaving her with the strange boy.

"So you are D," The young boy stated with an emotionless voice.

"Yes, I am. And you are?" She sat up in her bed and crossed her legs.

The boy walked into the room and sat in her desk chair, pulling his legs to his chest.

"I'm am Near," He pulled a brightly colored robot from his pocket and started to play with it, "I decided to meet the girl L seemed so interested in."

"Who is this L everyone keeps going on about?" She questioned, reaching into her pants pocket and pulling out a green jolly rancher.

She stuck it in her mouth, and savored the sour taste.

"If you were supposed to know, you would have been told," He continued to play with his robot. "Do you like puzzles?"

"Yes, I do," She replied, almost laughing at his serious tone.

He looked up at her with carefully blank eyes.

"Do you wish to play with me?" Near inquired, slight curiosity present in his usually emotionless voice.

"If you want me to," She standing and walking to the white haired boy's side.

Near gave her a almost nonexistent smile before grasping her hand and leading her from the room and down the empty hall.

He kept his grip on her hand, and was holding his robot tightly in the other.

He stopped in front of a door, and released her hand.

She followed him inside, and found she was in his bedroom.

Everything was plain and white, except for the dozens of robots sitting on shelves everywhere, which were all differently colored.

She moved to sit by him on the floor where had a pure white puzzle with a L in the top left corner.

Near lifted the puzzle above his head and dumped it onto the floor scattering the piece.

He looked up at Dakota as though saying, 'Are you going to help me or not,' and began to assemble the pieces.

"How old are you Near?" Dakota started in the lower left corner, and worked her way up.

She found it a little confusing, since all the pieces were white.

"Eleven. And you?" Near almost chuckled as he watched her struggle with a piece.

"14," She answered, finding the place for the piece she was holding.

"Why are you here?" Near inquired, twirling a lock of colorless hair around his finger.

"I don't understand what you mean," She said, looking up at him with her wide green eyes.

"Wammy's is a place for exceptional children. You must have some talent otherwise you would not be here," He lifted a small finger puppet that resembled himself.

"I'm considered a genius by normal standards," She told him, taking another green jolly rancher out of her pocket and offering it to him.

"Hn," He took it and put it in his mouth.

They had soon had finished the puzzle and started one that was very similar to it, except it was black with a white L.

After they were done with that one Near dumped it back on the floor and, with her help, reassembled it.

He didn't say much, but would observe her from the corner of his eye.

He noted that she seemed to stare off in space with a strange look on her face.

She would soon wake up from her 'trance' and help him with puzzle.

"I'm going to the kitchen, do you wish to join me?" He questioned, standing.

"Yes I would," She said brushing imaginary dust off her pants.

They walked down the basically empty halls, only a few younger children ran down the halls occasionally stopping to stare at the new girl.

"How many children live here?" Dakota asked, looking at the painting that adorned the walls.

Most were extremely expensive looking, being signed with fancy lettering at the bottom.

"20 counting you and A," He walked through the doorway that led to the kitchen.

Matt was sitting on a bar stool at the counter next to a boy with shoulder length blond hair.

The new boy was reading what looked like a article from the news paper.

He had an expensive looking chocolate bar in his right hand.

"Yo, D!" Matt called, motioning her to them.

She walked to Matt's side with Near following her close behind.

"Hello Matt," She said, looking at the blond boy as he glared at Near.

_If looks could kill,_ Immediately came to her mind.

She had an urge to push the 11 year old behind her, and protect him from the vicious glare the boy was giving him.

Near didn't seem to mind, he just twirled a lock of hair around his finger.

"This is Mello," Matt informed clasping a gloved hand to the blond's shoulder.

"It's nice to meet you Mello," She said smiling widely at the blond boy.

He turned his glare to her, and angrily bit off a piece of chocolate.

"Whatever," He turned away from her to glare at Near again.

This time she did step in front of him.

"Stop," She requested her face that had before been smiling was now completely serious.

"Stay out of this!" He growled, standing up.

"I haven't ever even talk to you before, and you treat me like a bitter enemy. And you can't glare at someone like that and just expect me to stand for it. I don't care if it doesn't bother him. You are older than him, so act like it!" She spat, her eyes narrowing at the chocolate loving boy.

Mello stood there not saying anything for a while, his dark blue eyes staring in disbelief at Dakota.

She kept her intense gaze on him, still standing protectively in front of Near.

Not many would have said that to him, and this girl had been smiling at him only a moment before.

He turned and walked from the room, muttering low curses under his breath.

He slammed the kitchen door behind him.

"Sorry about that D," Matt apologized.

"You shouldn't be," She sat in one of the bar stools, "He shouldn't have been glaring at Near."

"Him and Near have been enemies for a while, I don't think you can change that," He told her, sitting on her right side.

While Near sat on her left.

"He is not my enemy," Near said stacking sugar cubes that were sitting nearby. "He just seems to think he is. I just ignore him most of the time."

"I don't like how harsh he was towards you," Dakota declared.

"He's always been like that," Matt informed her.

She furrowed her brow and reached for a orange that was sitting in a nearby fruit bowl.

She started to peel it's skin off with her nails.

She offered a slice to Matt who took it and thanked her.

"Do you want a slice Near?" She asked holding one toward him.

"No," He pulled a toy robot from out of his pocket and set it on the counter.

She shrugged and continued to eat her orange.

"D!" She heard Aden's voice yell.

"In the kitchen!" She called back. Aden burst through the door panting. "What's wrong?"

"Come on!" He shouted grasping her wrist and pulling her from the room.

Matt and Near followed behind them quietly.

"What's going on?" She asked, struggling to keep up.

"That," He said stopping in front of her door.

Her eye narrowed as she saw what he was talking about.

Someone had wrote '_Whore_' and '_Bitch_' in big black letters on her door.

Then below that was a _-M_ written in permanent marker.

"I wonder who did that?" A voice commented. Dakota turned to see Mello leaning against the wall smirking. "I personally think it fits you."

Nobody saw her clench her fist until it was too late.

Her small fist crashed into his nose with amazing force.

She gave a large grin when she heard a satisfying crunching noise.

She had never been so angry before.

Mello fell to the ground his hand covering his bloody nose.

He looked at Dakota shocked, he hadn't thought she could punch that hard.

He whimpered as his hand brushed his nose.

Dakota suddenly felt guilty about her action and knelled beside the younger boy.

Mello scooted back quickly when she reached for his face.

Using her index finger, she tilted his chin upward and wiped some of the blood off his nose with her other hand.

She looked up at Aden with her guilt written all over her face.

He personally thought she was to compassionate.

The boy, Mello, deserved to be hit and deserved to be in pain for writing that about her.

"Will you get me a washcloth?" She stood, pulling Mello up with her.

He nodded and hurried the other direction.

She opened her, now ruined, door and led Mello to the door she was she was her bathroom.

Once inside she found it was pretty big.

She closed the lid on the toilet on pushed down on Mello's shoulders to get him to sit.

Near and Matt had followed them in.

Simply watching as she tilted his face skyward to slow the blood.

"I'm sorry. I acted like a child, I am such a hypocrite," She mumbled the last part to herself, pressing a wad of tissues to his nose.

He winched and closed his eyes.

"I sort of deserved it," Mello argued, "I shouldn't have wrote that kind of shit on your door."

"I still shouldn't have hit you. I let my emotions control me too often," She sat on the counter, keeping his chin tilted.

"I got the nurse here with me," Aden panted walking in the bathroom.

A older lady was following him, her brown curls bouncing with each step.

"Move over darling," She commanded Dakota who scooted back further onto the counter. "I'm Miss Bailey. It's a pleasure to meet you, deary. Now let's take a look at that nose of yours Mello."

Ms. Bailey shooed everyone from the bathroom, so she would have space to work.

Dakota was pacing back and forth past the end of her bed, where the others were watching her.

Matt suddenly stood and grabbed her arm to stop her.

"Stop," He requested, pulling her to sit on the bed.

"I didn't mean to hit him so hard," She confessed bringing her knees to her chest.

Surprisingly Near is the one that answered her.

"I think you did mean to hit him, because his actions hurt your emotions. You were already angry with him and weren't thinking straight, so when he mocked you, you lost the control you had over your anger," Near guessed looking up from his spot on the floor.

She gaped, he had known exactingly what she had been thinking.

She sighed and reached up to run a hand through her hair.

Matt's hand shot out and gripped her wrist.

He lifted her hand in the air showing her it still had blood all over it.

"Thanks," She smiled, putting her hands in her lap.

Mello walked out of bathroom a piece of cloth covering his nose.

"All I can recommend is keeping ice on it and taking some painkillers," Ms. Bailey said to Mello handing him a bottle of ibuprofen. He took and sat in Dakota's desk chair. "Boy I will never know how you get yourself hurt so easily. How did you fall down a flight of stairs anyhow?"

"My boots are a size too big, and I tripped going down the stairs," He told her eyes flickering to Dakota's.

"What am I going to do with you?" Ms. Bailey groaned, exiting Dakota's room.

"Thank you Mello," Dakota sheepishly moved to stand beside him. "For not telling I mean."

"Sure sure. You didn't mention the door. So I guess I owe you one," He broke off a piece of his chocolate and ate it.

"We should go get some ice for that nose of yours," He grimaced at the thought of more pain.

She rested a hand on his shoulder and lead him from her room, the others simply followed them.


	8. The Detective

Death: Today I will have Matt do the disclaimer.

Matt: Sure. Why not. *Plays video game*

Death: *Watches in horror as Matt kills zombies in game*

Matt: What?

Death: That's so creepy! *Shudders*

Matt: Here play it for a bit. *Hands her the control*

Death: DIE ZOMBIES! *Shoots horde of zombies*

Matt: Psh, I knew she would love it. Anyway Deathcomessoon does not own Death Note. If she did I, Mello, and L would have lived. Also innocent little Sayu Yagami would not have gone crazy, and would have been treated differently when she was kidnapped. And Light would have fell down a flight of stairs the second he found the Death Note, or he would have stayed innocent. A lot of the plot would be different and would make fangirls extremely happy.

Death: Yeah sure, whatever. *Stares at TV mesmerized*

Matt: I think you may be getting a little addicted. *Tries to take controller*

Death: No I'm not I could stop whenever I want. *Dodges him*

Matt: Okay how about now?

Death: I said whenever I want. *Rolls her eyes*

Matt:...

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 8

**Day 17**

Dakota was laying on her bed staring up at the white ceiling of her new room.

Moments ago Mello had introduced her to C, who Dakota assumed was his girlfriend.

He had hovered over C protectively, as though he was making sure no harm would come to her.

They seemed like an odd couple, the exact opposite of the other.

"_Opposites attract deary,_" Her Mother once said.

"_What about people who aren't opposites?_" Dakota had asked.

"_Ah, that makes the love all the stronger,_" She would answer in her cheery voice, but there was always a sad under tone to it, as though it pained her to say.

C wasn't drop dead gorgeous, but she had been pretty in her own way.

Her shoulder length black hair was as straight as a ruler, and her emerald eyes showed that she was afraid of basically everyone.

She had a naturally slender figure, and stuttered constantly, unless she was making an observation.

She looked quite a bit like she was a puppy about to be scolded, but she knew exactly what Dakota was thinking.

She knew that Dakota was still in pain about the death of her mother.

Dakota wasn't sure if she was going to survive here with the other children picking apart her facade so easily.

They were all so intelligent, noticing her every little quirk.

She knew that any secret she had would be _nearly_ impossible to keep. Nearly being the key word.

She was intelligent herself and could distract people from noticing certain things.

She let out a long sigh, before sitting up on her bed.

She pulled her iPod from her nightstand and put in her headphones.

A great dancing song came on and she started to dance.

She had a thing about dancing, she loved it, but she only danced in private because frankly she really, _really_ sucked.

She could dance about as well as a three legged horse could walk.

She bobbed her head to the beat.

She shook her hips in a slightly comical manner.

She was so into it she didn't notice her silent audience of one until he spoke.

"Excuse me?" She whipped around to see a boy standing in the doorway, watching her with a smirk on his face.

"You should knock before entering a room, especially a lady's room," She stated her face beat red with embarrassment.

Apparently hoping for some privacy in this place wouldn't happen.

She would have to buy a lock for her door.

"And miss your amazing dancing?" He questioned with sarcasm in his voice, "I'll pass."

"Who are you anyway?" She asked sitting on her bed, her legs crossed.

She noticed his slumped over posture as he walked across her room and sat in her desk chair.

He sat on the heels of his feet and pulled his legs to his chest.

His messy black hair looked as though it hadn't been brushed in weeks and hung partially in his eyes.

His dark eyes were the color of ashes after a intense fire.

It was a lonely color that would normally ward others off.

Dakota found them mesmerizing.

They gave her a feeling that was in between awe and wonder.

"You may call me L," He informed her, biting on his thumb. "Now tell me, what happened to your door?"

He was referring to the fact she had painted it black after Mello had defaced it.

His gaze was cutting, as though he already knew but wanted her to tell him.

She felt the need to explain everything, but didn't know whether or not Mello would get punished for it.

"It bored me," She lied smoothly, picking at imaginary dirt under her nails, "So, you are this L everyone keeps talking about. I can see why, you are certainly different."

"Yes, I am," He walked over to her nightstand and pulled out a book.

He recognized it as the first book he wrote.

He also noticed that she had dogeared every page, and had read it so often it's spine was wearing down.

Dakota snatched it out of his hands and held it to her chest, like it was something extremely important to her.

She used her foot to shut the drawer he was looking through.

She didn't want him to see the picture of her Mother.

"Can you not go through my stuff?" She snapped, bringing her knees to her chest.

"Do you read lots of detective books?" He asked motioning toward the book that she held to herself almost protectively.

"Not really, just this one," She laid back and stared up at the ceiling.

"Why just that one?" He inquired, watching as she turned her body his direction.

"I like it. He takes extremely hard cases that take months for regular people to solve, and catches the killer in mere days. He makes them seem easy," She said, not noticing the proud smirk growing on his face.

"What if I was to say that L is me?" He questioned, letting out a low chuckle at her surprised expression.

"Are you him?" Dakota's jade colored eyes grew wide with an almost childlike curiosity.

"Yes, I am also the first and second greatest detectives Eraldo Coil and Deneuve," He answered, pulling a piece of candy from his pocket and eating it.

A small smile broke across her face.

Though she looked like she had been trying to detain it.

"I always pictured him as a old man living alone in an apartment, there was no way I would have thought he would be a teenage boy," She sat on the desk next to him. "Not that it makes a difference."

"An old man?" He asked, a smirk growing on his face.

"Well, maybe not an old man, but certainly not someone my age," She opened her first drawer and pulled out two green jolly ranchers.

She offered him one, which he excepted, before eating her own.

"Why aren't you asleep?" L questioned looking at the clock sitting on her nightstand, which read 3 am.

"I don't sleep much," She looked down, a curtain of her golden locks covering her eyes.

"Hn," He put the tip of his thump in his mouth.

He had wanted to judge her reaction, but with her eyes hidden it was nearly impossible to tell what she was thinking.

The rest of her features didn't change much.

Only her lips which frowned slightly, and someone could only tell if they were searching for a change.

She pulled her legs to the top of her desk and crossed them.

She leaned back against the wall, her eyes still hidden.

"Can I draw you?" She asked looking up once her eyes were blank again.

"You may, but I must ask that you keep it to yourself," He leaned back watching as she searched through her drawers for her sketch pad.

Her brow furrowed when she couldn't find it.

"It's still in my pack," She announced to herself, walking over to where her black bag sat.

As she dug through it a pair of lacy black panties fell out of her bag, it went unnoticed by Dakota.

She pulled out a large sketch pad, and moved to sit back down.

"I believe you dropped a pair of your undergarments," He pointed toward the panties on the wood floor.

She quickly hid them in her pack, her cheeks a bright crimson.

She had noticed that he wasn't perverted like many of the teenage boys she had come across, even Dylan had said something and he had been her friend.

"Sit still," She told him, pushing his chair so she could sit on the edge of her bed while she worked.

She ran the tip of the pencil over the blank page, outlining the area where she would draw him.

He nodded and began to observe her.

She would look up every couple minutes, sometimes bite the end of her pencil and erase a line.

She seemed to have a little trouble with his eyes, maybe making them emotionless?

"Do you plan on being an artist when you are older?" He tried to stay as still as possible when saying this.

"Probably not," She looked up at him, then back down at the forming image, "I love art, but I would hate for it to be a job instead of a hobby."

This didn't make much sense to him, but he bit his tongue.

He probably wouldn't understand it even if she explained it to him.

She seemed different, emotionally, than most.

Stunted maybe?

Either way her face showed a flash of pain when she had told him it.

So it must have had something to do with her past.

It had been around 15 minutes when she added the final details of her drawing.

She wrote an old English font L at the top.

She wasn't sure she wanted to show him her drawing, but it would only be fair right?

He had let her draw him and in return she should at the very least show him the drawing.

"Done," She stated turning it towards him and allowing him to look it over.

L was shocked to see how well she had done.

Though only in black and white it looked like a mirror image.

She had drawn him with his thumb to his mouth, and a childlike smile adorning his face.

In his hand was the jolly rancher wrapper that he had his fist balled around.

His hair was as messy as usual, with several strands sticking in the air.

His gray eyes were full of curiosity, unlike the blank look that normally resided in them.

He reached up to pat the stray strands on his own hair down, by a hand grasped his wrist.

He looked to see Dakota smiling shyly at him.

"I like it better messy," She told him, releasing his wrist. "So what do you think of my drawing?"

He wanted to say, '_It's marvelous. If I went to a professional they wouldn't have been able to draw it as amazing as you did. You drew every little detail perfectly, and being an artist is a path you should take. You could make millions from it._' but he couldn't just say it like that.

He was sure, she would think he was being dishonest and he wanted to gain her trust.

"It is quite good," He answered giving her a small smile.

"Thank you," She smiled cutely. "Do you wish to keep it?"

She didn't want him to take it, but he might think she was a stalker if she didn't at least offer.

She really liked how she drew it, and wished to keep it.

Purely because it was great, or at least that's what she told herself.

_You really want it because you think he's cute_. A voice inside her whispered.

"You may keep it. I'm not quite sure what I would do with it," He admitted, "And someone might think I was vain if I carried a picture of myself around."

She chuckled, tucking the sketch pad into her drawer.

"Miss Hudson?" A voice gruffly called from outside her room.

"Yes?" She said opening her door.

Dakota was surprised someone was using her last name.

Mr. Roger had told her not to tell anyone.

An older lady with graying hair was standing there, with a scowl on her aged face.

She looked around Dakota at L, her face growing more angered.

"What is a boy doing in your room, and why aren't you both asleep?" The lady growled, causing Dakota to take a step back.

"We were talking, and I don't sleep very often," Dakota answered, looking at the older woman confused as to why she was so angry.

"At four in the morning? If I was anyone else I might suspect you two were doing something inappropriate," The older woman was practically yelling at her now.

"Mrs. Evans, I assure you we were not doing anything of the sort. And if you do not wish to wake up everyone down this hall, you would be quiet," He sounded as though he was scolding her.

"Young man, what is your name? I will report you to Roger!" She snapped, pointing a bony finger in his face.

"I am L," He replied, his dark eyes watching her face.

Th older woman seemed shocked and took a few steps back, "Forgive me Master L. I did not know it was you."

"It is all right, and Watari knows I am here with Miss Hudson," L informed her standing from his chair. "Miss Hudson I must take my leave. Even I need a little sleep."

"Okay. Good night," She said, sitting back down on her bed.

He gave her a awkward wave before exiting her room.

"Miss Hudson, I will let you know that having a young man in your room at this time of night is something I will not tolerate. You are lucky it was Master L, or you both would have been severely punished," She scolded, storming out of the room.

Dakota laid back in her bed, staring up at her white ceiling.

She had just met _the_ L, and not only that.

She had been accused of doing something inappropriate with him.

He didn't look like the kind of guy that would disrespect her like that.

He seemed like someone who would wait for marriage. Not just sleep with the first girl he meets.

She had to admit he was a real gentlemen, he didn't make one move towards her in a sexual manner.

Even though they were alone, in her room, _at night_.


	9. My Beautiful Cage

Author's Note: I'm having a little trouble with Near, Mello, and Matt's ages, and I'm not happy with this chapter. It didn't turn out very good. I wanted to fix it, but went over it tons of times and couldn't find a solution. So here it is!

Death: Today Light shall do the disclaimer! *Pokes him with a sharp stick*

Light: I'm not even in the story why should I do the disclaimer?

Death: Silence! I kill you! *Stabs with fork*

Light: Ow, why?

Death: Because you killed L! *Starts sobbing*

Light: Oh, yeah, that. *Starts laughing like a crazy*

Death: Knock it off! *Hits him with a frying pan*

Light: *Passes out on the floor*

Ryuk: Loser *Eats apple*

Death: You're at fault too! *Hits him with frying pan*

Matt: Stop! Can't you see you're tearing this family apart!

Mello: Really Matt, really?

Near: What Matt says makes sense to me.

Mello and Death: *O.O*

Death: You know what, would someone please do the disclaimer before I get sued and thrown in jail, then that would really tear this family apart!

Dakota: Death doesn't own Death Note, nor does she own the characters, she only owns me and a few other OCs.

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 9

**Day 18**

Dakota was standing in an open field, the ground around her was covered rose bushes.

The roses surrounding her were a bright crimson color.

Their beauty being rivaled by no other.

They were in full bloom, the petals stretching out in the sunlight.

She was standing alone, nobody else to share their beauty.

It was a sad fact, but she felt as though someone was watching her.

Whoever this was had a dark vibe to them.

It seemed to pulse through the air of the field.

"Hello?" She called out for them.

She knew they could hear her.

"Yes?" A boy stepped through the roses towards her.

His raven black hair covering his features.

She started to walk his way, but the roses would prick her if she tried.

She could only stand in the small circle where the roses didn't grow.

Her arm bumped into a branch of thorns, causing blood to drip to the ground.

She clutched her hand over her bleeding wound.

"Why am I here?" She questioned the boy.

"Do you not like roses, _Mon bel amour_?" His tone was surprisingly gentle and calm. "I can make them lilies if you wish."

"No, these roses are quite beautiful," She took a few steps back as he stepped into the patch of clear.

She didn't even know who this boy was and yet he was calling her _his beautiful love_.

"As are you," His smooth hand cupped her face.

It felt as though he had met him before, but she couldn't remember where. "I wish to walk amongst them, not be trapped."

"I'm sorry, my beautiful captive, I wish for you to stay here with me," He softly brushed her hair from her face.

His eyes were still hidden by his shaggy black hair.

_He looks like L,_ She noted, but she knew he wasn't L.

This was someone different.

"I'm not sure who you are," She told him, moving back a few move steps until her back was pressed against a bush.

The thorns ripped through the soft skin of her back, blood staining her shirt.

Tears flooded her eyes, but she didn't move away.

"You are hurting yourself," He pulled lightly on her arm, causing her to fall into his arms. "Nobody can hurt you, not when I'm here."

"How do I know you won't hurt me?" She inquired, trying to break his hold on her.

"I will never hurt you," He whispered, looking up at her eyes.

She gasped and took a few steps back.

His eyes matched the bloody color of the roses.

"I promise," He said, his bloody orbs full of empathy that was masked with insanity.

He gave her a slightly crazed smile, before leaning down to press his lips to her own.

He tasted like rust and salt.

_The taste of blood_, She thought, struggling to push him away.

**xxxxXXXxxxx**

She sat up straight in bed, running to her bathroom to throw up.

Her body was dripping with sweat, soaking her clothes.

She pulled her hair back into a tight ponytail to avoid getting puke in her hair.

A clock on the wall read 6 am, she had only gotten two hours of sleep.

She looked in the mirror, noting that she had bitten her lip roughly while she had slept.

The crimson dripped down her chin, reminding her of the dream.

She gagged and threw up again.

She wasn't even sure why the dream made her so sick, it just had.

Whether it was his deadly eyes or his blood tasting lips.

She wasn't sure, but she knew that she had been his, for lack of better words, pet.

He had been keeping her for the same reason someone keeps a caged bird, just to hear it sing.

That thought left a bad taste in her mouth, causing her to retch again.

She was basically throwing up stomach acid now, and it burned her throat on it's way up.

She cupped her hands and quickly drank water from the sink, washing away the taste.

She searched for a tooth brush, and was relieved to find one in the drawer next to a tube of mint flavored toothpaste.

She scrubbed out her mouth until she deemed it clean enough.

She turned on the shower allowing the water to warm, as she stood in front of the mirror.

She slipped off her shirt, looking at her now uncovered back.

It was slightly red as though something had lightly scratched the skin, but it was normal otherwise.

She had been half expecting it to be bleeding.

She could still feel the pain as the thorns broke through her skin, even though it was only a dream.

She stepped under the spray of the water, washing the sweat from her still shaking body.

She gently washed her hair, spacing out as she stared at the white tiled wall.

She wrapped herself tightly in her towel, and searched her unpacked bags for clothes.

She decided on a pair of black skinny jeans, and a blouse.

Her mother's necklace was in one of the smaller pockets on her bag.

She clipped it around her neck.

The red jewel dropped down between her cleavage, hidden beneath the collar of her blouse.

She liked how pretty the dark color of the ruby looked with her pale skin, but it reminded her of the dream.

This time she didn't vomit, but thought the dream over.

In her mind she had molded a boy to look like L, but red eyes.

It didn't make sense to her.

She knew that a nightmare was a fear of the subconscious, but she didn't fear L.

So why would he be seen as the villain and her as the prisoner.

A knock at the door broke her from her thoughts.

"D!" It was Aden's voice.

He sounded excited about something, which was unusual in itself.

"Come in," She called sitting on her bed.

He burst through the door, making it slam against the wall loudly.

She cringed, hoping it wouldn't wake the younger residences. "What is it Aden?"

"It's time for breakfast," He was calming down, and was now able to talk without yelling.

"And why is that so important?" She inquired laying back on her bed.

"We're supposed to meet the others today," He said sitting beside her.

"I don't want to," She replied childishly.

She covered her eyes with her arm.

"And why is that?" It wasn't Aden who asked this.

She looked up to see L leaning in his hunched over position against the door frame.

"It's going to be crowded and I hate being in large groups of people," She told him, sitting up in her bed. "Oh yeah, thanks for bringing my desk here by the way."

"You are welcome," He bit the end of his thump. "Are you claustrophobic?"

"Not really, I'm just not really a people person," She stood and brushed the wrinkles out of her blouse.

"Who are you?" Aden rudely asked, throwing his arm around Dakota's shoulder.

"I am L," L said, standing up straighter.

"So you're the stalker who brought Dakota's stuff here?" Aden narrowed his eyes, and pulled Dakota closer to his side.

"Well, I am not her 'stalker' as you so blatantly put it, but yes I am the one who brought her things here," L took a couple steps closer to them.

"Both of you stop it," Dakota growled shrugging Aden's arm off her. She was getting tired of listening to them argue. "Let's just go get this breakfast thing over with."

"Yes, let's." Aden gripped her hand and walked with her from the room.

"Are you and Miss Hudson in a relationship?" L questioned walking beside the two of them.

"What n-" Dakota managed before Aden interrupted her.

"You could say that," He gave L a smug look, as he held her closer.

"No we are not," Dakota pulled away from Aden, with a angry look on her face. "What's going on with you lately? I can have friends other than you."

"None of these guys here just want to be your friend. I understand that you are intelligent, but you are so dense sometimes. You are beautiful and these guys just want to get in your pants," He said his voice growing harsh.

L stayed quiet knowing this was not a time for him to interfere.

This was their fight, and he would only make it worse, considering he was socially retarded and had no idea how to fix it.

"Why are you acting like you own me?" She asked, her eyes narrowing, "I can choose my own path. You don't have to look out for me. I'm not a child."

"I'm just trying to protect you," He told her wrapping his arms around her in an embrace.

It wasn't romantic, it was just a hug.

"I know what people are like, and there will always be a chance I could get hurt," She hugged him back before pulling away and looping her arm through his.

L was just standing there patiently waiting for them to make up.

He had been informed by Halle of their close relationship when they were on the plane.

Though Halle had said they were romantically involved, their relationship appeared to be closer to siblings than lovers.

He could tell that Aden wished to be closer than that, but Dakota didn't seem to notice the quiet yearning in Aden's eyes whenever he looked at her.

"Let's go L," Dakota said pulling on his arm lightly.

He allowed her to pull him down the hall to the dining room.

There were over a dozen children already seated, and their eyes immediately went to Dakota, Aden, and L.

A little girl jumped out of her seat and ran towards them, throwing her arms around Dakota's waist.

"Mommy!" She exclaimed her hold tightening on her waist. All Dakota could she was a head of blond hair.

"She's not your-" Aden started to say before Dakota put her hand over his mouth.

"Yes Hun?" She asked lifting the small girl into her arms.

The girl weighed almost nothing, making it easy for Dakota to hold her.

"She's not your mommy stupid!" One of the little boys yelled.

"Why is it little girls love you and little boys hate you?" Aden questioned smiling.

"I'm not sure, but I don't mind," She walked over and took a seat with empty ones beside it. She kept the little girl on her lap. "What's your name?"

"I'm Hana!" She giggled, leaned against Dakota.

"That's such a pretty name," She told her, patting her head.

"Well, I can see why she thought you were her Mother, you two look a lot alike," Aden said taking the seat beside her.

Hana and Dakota shared the same color of eyes, and their hair was almost the same golden blond.

L silently sat in the chair beside her, watching her interaction with Hana.

He hadn't noticed this mothering side to her.

Sure he had heard of the altercation with Mello over the fact he wouldn't stop glaring at Near, but he hadn't thought she was this sweet towards younger children.

"Yo D!" Matt yelled walking into the room, his eyes were glued to a small hand held gaming device.

Mello was following behind him glaring at the floor.

"Hello Matt," She smiled widely at the obsessive gamer.

"Hey D," Mello said, taking the seat across from her.

C, who Dakota had not even noticed until then, sat beside him.

Dakota nodded in his direction, and smiled at C.

She pulled a piece of candy out of her pocket and gave it Hana, who took it happily.

Dakota set her back down on her feet, and watched the little girl run back to her seat.

Hana suddenly tripped and started to cry.

Dakota jumped up and hurried to help her up.

A boy with shaggy black hair beat her to it.

He looked a lot like L, but was wearing all black.

He looked up at her with dark gray eyes.

They weren't the same color as L's, instead having a darker tint to them.

"I'm B, _Mon bel amour_," He told her after setting the small girl back on her feet.

"I'm D," She gave him a small wave, before sitting back down.

He had looked just like the boy from her dream, he had also called her _his beautiful love_.

She tried to convince herself it was just a coincidence, but still couldn't shake off the worried feeling.

"That guy was creepy," Aden whispered in her ear.

"Sort of, I guess," She mumbled dropping her eyes to the bright red tablecloth.

"Don't worry that's just how Beyond is," L reassured her.


	10. Strange Names

**I do not own Death Note.**

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 10

**Day 18**

Dakota was sitting in her chair at the dining room table tapping her fingertips against the surface.

It made a loud rapping noise that had everyone in the room staring at her.

She had her legs crossed, and was leaning back against her chair.

She hadn't said much, but was extremely anxious about being in such a crowded room.

Aden, who was sitting beside her, was telling her to be quieter.

He didn't like the looks that the others were giving her.

She ignored him and continued making the noise.

She started to hum along with the beat.

It was a song her mother used to hum to her, it never really had words.

Her mother would just hum it to keep her calm after her father left, seeing as she was just a little girl who had lost her father.

L thought the noise was humorous, and the stares didn't bother him.

The song she was humming was quite interesting.

He was sitting in his strange way with his knees pulled to his chest, and was eating a strawberry cupcake he had brought with him.

Some of the children who were watching him were wondering why he wasn't being yelled at.

Normally no sweets were allowed until after the meal, Mello, Near, Beyond, and apparently this new guy were the only ones allowed sweets.

Anyone who broke that rule usually got scolded by Mrs. Evans or one of the other caretakers.

"Can you stop staring?" Dakota asked pulling a quarter from her pocket and twirling it on the table top.

She started to flip it, before Aden snatched it from her.

She gave him a halfhearted glare and tried to retrieve her coin.

Aden held it just out of her reach.

"Introduce yourself Miss Hudson," Mr. Roger said appearing out of nowhere.

He was glaring slightly at all the children, except L.

Who was now eating a bowl of strawberries, that no one had seen before now.

"I'm Dakota, call me D. It's a pleasure to meet you all," Dakota stated, with a fake smile on her face.

She was obviously uncomfortable with being in a crowded room, and it made her slightly meaner than usual.

She sat back down in her seat, and held out her hand for her coin.

Aden set it in her palm, with a stern look, before introducing himself, "I'm Aden, It's nice to meet you."

"Now that you know who are new guests are, I would like to introduce you to the L," He informed them as L stood.

He gave a half wave, and stuck a pick of candy in his mouth.

His face was impassive as usual.

All the children started to whisper about him, it was expected considering he had been their idol for years.

Some were excited, some uncaring.

Most refused to believe this boy was L.

He wasn't what they had built him up to be, but he was still L.

He was the man (adolescent) they were all hoping to become.

"That's not possible!" Mello whispered angrily to Matt.

Matt nodded in agreement, his eyes never leaving his game.

Mello's eyes were watching L in disbelief, for once he wasn't eating his chocolate.

"He's L!" A girl near the end yelled.

She ran to his side, and fluttered her eyelashes.

She looked a little too old to be flirting with a 14 year old. "I'm Linda, it's _so_ nice to meet you!"

"Yes, Linda. The artist, am I correct?" He inquired, sitting back in his seat.

He was biting into the last strawberry that he had.

"Yes! I'm the best in the orphanage!" She exclaimed, gripping his arm tightly.

He dropped his strawberry and was now glaring at the girl, who didn't seem to notice his hateful gaze.

"The best in the orphanage?" Dakota questioned, twirling her coin.

"Yeah I am, got a problem with it!" Linda growled, her hazel eyes narrowing. "Can you move? I would like to sit next to the L."

"No, I don't have a problem with it, but I'm not going to move. I'm quite comfortable where I am, and besides I don't think _the_ L want you to sit by him." Dakota told her, putting the silver coin back in her pocket and looking away not really caring.

"Well, I'm one of the best here! I'm ranked Fifth! You have to listen to me!" She yelled, flicking her wavy brown hair.

She was obviously one of the stuck up girls in the house.

Dakota thought about hitting her like she hit Mello, but decided to give her a chance.

Everyone here had lost their parents, maybe she wasn't quite over it yet.

"Seventh," L stated trying to shake her off his arm. "Miss Hudson is ranked fifth now, and Aden is ranked third."

"I was moved down?" Mello asked anger seeping into his voice. His blue eyes were filled with Malice towards the new boy.

"Yes you are fourth now," L succeeded in shaking the older girl off his arm. "Though I assume Miss Hudson and Aden will be moved up soon."

"What!" Mello shouted jumping from his chair, which fell backwards with a loud crack.

"C-calm d-down," C said, gripping his arm gently.

Her touch seemed to help a little, but he was still to angry to completely calm down.

"No! It's just like it was with Near! She's here one day and she's already above me!" He yelled, yanking his arm from her grip and running from the room.

His chocolate lay forgotten on the table.

"I'm s-sorry a-about M-mello," C picked up his chair and pushed it back in place. "I s-should go s-speak t-to him."

"I should go too. This is my fault," Dakota stood from her chair.

"No, he needs time to calm down," Near told her, his tone uncaring.

He was stacking dice on the table, a girl sitting next to him was helping.

She looked a year or two younger than Near.

A small boy, who sitting across the table from them, threw a spoon at the growing pile of dice.

Successfully knocking them down.

The dice scattered across the tabletop.

The young girl's ice blue eyes narrowed dangerously at the young boy.

Her small hands gripped the tablecloth tightly.

Her eyes dropped to the ground, covered by her ebony black bangs.

She stood and walked from the room, Near followed her silently.

"That was Rain," Matt told Dakota. "She has anger issues. She hasn't spoken to anyone but Near."

"Why are we the only people here with normal names?" Aden asked, leaning back in his chair.

His eyes were slightly narrowed towards the other boys, like always, but they didn't seem as hostile as usual.

"We have normal names, but we use fake names," He informed them, "My real name is Mail."

"I like that name," Dakota smiled at him. "It's not common."

"I'm Beyond," B sat where Mello had been sitting.

He was eating from a jar of strawberry jar with his fingers.

It made Dakota a little uneasy, but she didn't say anything.

"I'm C-colette," C stuttered, sitting back down.

Her emerald eyes flickered up to meet Dakota's Jade, before dropping to the tabletop.

"I can't tell you my name," L stood and walked from the room.

His expression was slightly pained, before it smoothed out and became emotionless.

The rest of the children followed him out, leaving Matt, Beyond, Crimson, Dakota, and Aden sitting alone in the dining room.

"Why can't he?" Dakota asked, her eyes staring at the door he went out.

She would have liked to know his name, but didn't matter that much.

"It's too dangerous for the L to tell his name to others in case one tries to hurt him," Beyond answered licking some jam off his fingers.

His dark eyes were watching Dakota intensely.

It gave her the chills, and made her slightly uncomfortable.

"Beyond, you speak french?" Dakota inquired, her eyes shining with curiosity.

"Yes, everyone here has learned at least two languages. I know French, Spanish, German, Italian, Russian, and Japanese," He told her. "How about you?"

"I only speak Spanish and French," She said rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly.

Usually Dakota was the one who impressed others.

Not that she cared, but Beyond was incredible intelligent.

Nobody else at the table seemed impressed by his vast knowledge of languages, but it was an orphanage for overly intelligent children after all.

They all probably knew this, and were no longer impressed.

"Do you wish to learn any others?" Beyond was watching her with excited eyes, hoping she would say yes.

He liked this girl so far, and L had shown an interest in her.

Which usually meant Beyond would as well.

"Japanese would be helpful to learn, as would German," She started to spin her quarter again.

She really wanted to learn both, but didn't want to seem too excited.

"I could teach you," He smiled widely. "It wouldn't be that hard."

"That would be really great. I have always wanted to learn Japanese, but it wasn't available at my school in the US," She pulled a jolly rancher out of her pocket and stuck it in her mouth.

"What state did you live in?" Matt asked, his fingers still pressing the buttons on his game.

"Washington," She answered, standing up and walking towards a nearby window.

It had an amazing view of the grounds.

It was cloudy outside, but that didn't affect Dakota.

She wasn't fond of days where the sun was too bright.

_You are my sunshine._

_My only sunshine._

She rested her palm against the cool glass.

She noticed there wasn't any children playing outside, unlike at _Fircrest_, where there were always children outside.

It was depressing considering they were at an orphanage.

It was a lonely sight, there should be children playing outside.

Her fingers moved up to softly touch her necklace, as they always did when she thought of home.

"Are you okay?" Beyond asked, he had moved to stand beside her while she was spacing out.

Her eyes had glazed over, and she had stopped moving completely except for her hand gripping the small red gem hanging from her neck.

Which she released and allowed it to fall back inside her shirt, hidden from the world as it usually was.

"I'm fine," She shook her head, and looked away from the window.

She moved to sit back down when Beyond hand gripped her wrist gently and gave her a concerned look.

Her partially forgotten dream returned fresh to her mind.

She shook off his arm, and sat back down.

His eyes, in the dream they had been crimson, but they weren't.

They were a deep gray, but that's not what bothered her.

It was the fact she had dreamt of someone she had never even met before.

At first she had thought it was L, but it wasn't.

It had been Beyond.

"I'm getting a migraine, I think I'm going to go lay down." She stood and walked to the door. "I'll see you guys later."

It was just an excuse to get away.

She didn't feel completely comfortable around Beyond, and wished she hadn't excepted his help with languages.

She walked down the empty halls, looking at the doors she passed.

Most of the rooms she passed were bedrooms, she also passed a library, a kitchen, and a computer room.

She passed a door that was painted white, while the others were plain wood.

She wondered who lived in the room, when the door opened and L walked out.

He inspected the hallway for children, and gave her a almost nonexistent smile when he saw her.

"Oh, hello," He said, smiling slightly at her. "I was able to outrun those children."

"They're just happy to meet their idol," She leaned against the wall.

She tugged lightly on the hem of her shirt.

"Do you want to come in?" He smiled and held open the door to his room.

He was trying to make her comfortable.

"Yeah sure," She accepted walking through the open door.

Every thing in his room was white except the messy comforter on his bed, which was black, and the laptop on his desk, which was light gray.

It all seemed very boring, but nice at the same time.

She sat on his bed, which was as comfortable as it looked, while he sat in his desk chair.

"I know about your nightmares," He drank from a cup of tea that was sitting on the desk, before adding more sugar until it more sugar than tea.

"I don't know what you are talking about," She wasn't sure who told him, but she wasn't happy about it.

"I know that you rarely if ever get a few hours of sleep at a time. An old friend informed me about the incident on the plane," He informed her.

"I would ask who, but you probably wouldn't tell me. And my nightmares are none of your business," Her fingers brushed against her necklace, which L hadn't noticed until then considering it had been hidden in her shirt.

It stood out against the pale of her skin and the dark of her clothes, complementing both.

"Where did you get that?" He walked to her side, and leaned down until he was right in her face.

She scooted back a bit, as he climbed on the bed and reached for her necklace.

His fingers brushed her's aside as he ran his fingers over the jewel in a manner much like her own.

"It was my mothers," She scooted back a bit more until her back hit the head board.

"Am I correct in thinking it is a ruby?" He asked, bringing his knees to his chest.

His head tilted slightly to the side like a young confused child.

His face was emotionless, while his eyes showed curiousity.

"Yes you are," She swung her legs over the side of the bed, staring down at her converse.

They were wearing down.

She would need to switch to the new pair that Mr. Hodgens had gotten her, and soon.

Or she could just do what L does, and walk around barefoot.

In this place it wouldn't seem strange, considering people just wore whatever they wanted.

"What haunts your nightmare?" He asked after a moment of silence.

"Death," She stood and walked from his room gracefully, once out of sight she sped up and hurried to her room.

She found her room quickly, and shut the door behind her pushing her chair under the doorknob to keep it shut.

She didn't feel like talking to anyone else.

She lay in her bed staring up at the ceiling surprised to find it was already one in the afternoon.

She had spent the morning doing basically nothing, which was all she seemed to be doing lately.

Dakota reached into her nightstand and pulled out the picture of her and her mother.

It had a small tear in the upper right corner but nothing big.

It had been a sunny day when the picture was taken.

A twelve year old Dakota was sitting on a balcony in a black sundress that made her pale skin look even lighter in the bright sun.

Her long blond hair had been cut to her shoulders and curled into perfect ringlets.

Her lips had curved upward into the smallest of smiles as she looked at the young children playing in the green grass below.

Dakota's mother had set the timer on the camera so she could be in picture with her.

Her mother was wearing a pair of old faded jeans, that were a few sizes too big, and a bright blue tang top that showed off her thin frame.

On top of her auburn hair sat an old straw hat, that had seen better days.

She was barefoot and it was easy to see the small heart tattoo on her ankle.

It was a reminder of her college days, where every night was a party.

There were barely noticable bags under her eyes that were covered up by make up.

She looked exhausted, but had a wide smile on her face as she spent her Saturday off with her daughter.

Dakota loved this picture.

It had been a fond memory of her mother.

On the rare days her mother got off from work she spent them either cleaning the house, which was easy with Dakota's help, or spending time with her only daughter who was more than happy to see her mother.

Sometimes they would spurge and go somewhere nice like a local restaurant or to the zoo.

Dakota loved the zoo, seeing as there were plenty of things to draw.

She had millions of pictures from those days hidden in the bottom of one of her drawers.

She shook off the thought and walked over to her desk, pulling out her sketch pad.

She flipped through the recent pages and tore one out.

She trimmed the edges until she deemed it okay and tacked it to the wall.

It was a drawing of Aden, Kendall, and Dylan.

Dylan and Kendall had talked her into going outside, and Aden came with just to make sure nothing happened.

She had sat herself in the grass and had drawn her newly found friends.

Aden had been leaning against the trunk of a nearby tree, watching as Dylan and Kendall fought over a piece of candy they had found in the grass.

Dakota had said neither one should eat it, but as usual they ignored her and fought over the old piece anyway.

She rolled her eyes and filled the time by drawing them.

Eventually it had started raining and they had hurried inside.

The picture had spots where the rain drops had hit it, but she had made it back inside before any real damage had been made to the image.

It looked quite lovely and the spots added character or so Bell had said.

She missed bell and had only drawn one picture of the raven haired little girl.

Which had been basically a quick sketch.

She would have to ask a favor of L later.

Maybe she could talk him into getting her a picture of the small girl?


	11. Born to be Forgotten

Death: Here's Sayu Yagami with the disclaimer!

Sayu: Why am I here?

Death: Cause when you went crazy I was sad, so here you aren't crazy *Smiles widely*

Sayu: Deathcomessoon does not own Death Note or it's characters. Nor does she pretend to. She also doesn't own Hello by Evanescence, though she does enjoy listening to it. :)

Death: You don't know what I do in my free time.

Sayu: Ookaaay.

Dakota: She does however own me, Rain, and Bell. Though the latter is not in this chapter.

Light: Muhahaha. *Crazy eyes*

Death: And it is evil Light. I really hate evil Light. *Takes out a sharp knife*

Light: Who do you think you are? I'm God of the new world! *Takes out Death Note*

Matsuda: DIE! *Shoots Light several times while crying*

Death: Intense... *Takes a few steps back*

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 11

**Day 25**

Dakota was sitting on an old wooden swing outside the orphanage, the large yard was empty of children like always.

The sky was cloudy and gray, not a single sign showing it would go away anytime soon.

It looked as though it was about to storm, but the clouds didn't let a single drop of rain loose.

It slightly disappointed her, but she could wait for the sky to decide to let it's tears fall.

She was humming to herself and before long she was singing out loud.

"_Playground school bell rings again._

_Rain clouds come to play, again._

_Has no one told you she's not breathing?_

_Hello, I'm your mind, giving you someone to talk to._

_Hello..._"

Her voice was a little too rough to be considered great, but it had a certain haunting tone to it.

One that her mother used to love about it.

Dakota had always been fond of singing, but rarely ever sang aloud.

Her mother had always encouraged her to 'shoot for the stars' or so she used to say.

She had loved her mother, of course she had nothing to hate her for.

Unlike her father, who had left her mother to support a child on her own.

Of course by that time it was a relief he was gone.

He had been coming home drunk or stoned.

He never became violent with them, but he did have a habit of raising his voice when it was unneeded.

"Mother, I miss you," She whispered, her bright eyes looking up at the depressing sky. She fingered the jewel around her neck out of habit. "It's getting better, but it still hurts." Her right hand gripped the material of her shirt tightly.

"I'm sorry for your loss," A voice said from behind her.

She jumped off the seat and spun around to see Beyond standing there with his hands in his pockets, looking very much like L.

The only difference the two had was beyond wore a long sleeved black shirt and his eyes were a shade darker than L's.

"Don't be," She sat back down on the swing. "It wasn't your fault."

He sat down on the swing to the right of her, the chains creaked lightly under his weight.

She could feel his eyes on her face, but didn't bother looking his way.

She wasn't feeling especially social today and it showed, seeing as she didn't even bother showing up at breakfast and had been sitting outside for three hours.

Normally she at least grabbed an orange and sat with Aden in the kitchen while he ate, but Aden hadn't seen her all day.

"Are you not feeling well?" He questioned, his gray eyes still watching her face.

He reached out to check her temperature by resting his palm on her forehead.

She wasn't acting normal, which wasn't exactly uncommon at Wammy's house.

Most people here had unusual habits.

"I'm fine," She told him standing. Her eyes slid to the edge of the orphanages grounds, where there was several large trees. She made her way towards the largest one, when she noticed Beyond was still following her. "I'm going to climb that tree," She said pointing, "Join me if you wish."

"That's not a good idea. A lot of children have fallen and broken bones from climbing that exact tree," He had a slightly worried look in his eyes, but the same slightly insane look was still present as his eyes flickered up at a spot over head.

As though he was staring at something only he could see.

Ignoring his comment and strange action she pulled her golden hair into a messy bun, keeping it out of her way.

She grabbed a lower branch and hoisted herself up.

She continued to pull herself higher, until she finally found a comfortable spot near the top.

It gave a good view of the gloomy grounds.

"So what the fun in this?" Beyond asked, climbing into the spot beside her.

She was surprised he had managed follow her up.

Her green eyes flickered over to him, before turning back to the scenery.

Dakota looked at peace sitting in the high tree, even if she fell she would probably just climb back up.

Her rose colored lips curled upward into a soft smile as she stared into the distance.

Surrounding the grounds was a ten foot tall brick wall that looked old, but sturdy. "It's the fact that when someone is missing you don't usually look in trees for them."

"Would you like to be alone?" He rested his hand on her small calloused one.

He entwined his fingers with hers.

"It doesn't matter," She closed her eyes and leaned back against the trunk of the tree.

He moved his thump over the back of her hand in a comforting manner.

Normally she would have pulled away, but today it felt nice.

She hadn't gotten much sleep, after a particularly bad nightmare.

"Tired?" He asked, chuckling lightly as she nodded tiredly.

He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her against his chest.

She curled closer to the warmth of his body and rested her head on his collarbone.

"Thank you," Dakota mumbled, reaching up to pat his head. She looked up at him with her large green eyes, that were filled with a strange emotion that Beyond couldn't identify. "_Mes rêves sont hantés par la mort._"

Her heavy eyelids closed for the first time in days, leaving Beyond to ponder her words.

_Her dreams are haunted by death_? Is that why she had been looking so weak as of late?

She hadn't been sleeping?

**xxxxXXXxxxx**

Dakota was sitting on the ledge of a tall building, her bare feet swinging in the air.

Her body was covered in a long black gown made of silk.

It revealed her pale neck and shoulders.

She had her sketch pad sitting in her lap as the tip of her pencil ghosted over the blank sheet.

She wasn't sure what she was drawing, but she wanted it to be perfect.

"Hello?" She turned to see Aden standing there with a saddened look on his face.

"Aden?" She tried to stand but was held back by a pair of arms that had wrapped around her waist. She realized she was sitting on Beyond's lap, his eyes were a crimson red once more. As they always were in her dreams. "Where are we?"

"Anywhere you want," Beyond whispered his lips brushing her ear with every word.

He rested his chin on her bare shoulder and gestured towards the landscape.

The scene melted away and suddenly they were no longer in a city, but in a forest.

Deer wandered in and out of the clearing they sat in.

The ground was blanketed with red carnations, they nearly matched the color of Beyond eyes. "Why carnations?"

"They mean admiration," He tightened his grip on her waist. "And red looks so beautiful on you."

"Dakota," Aden whispered watching them talk. "I love you."

"I love you too," She gave him a gentle smile, waved him closer. Beyond gave a small grunt and gripped her wrist painfully. "B you're hurting me."

"I'm sorry," He lifted her wrist to his lips and kissed them lightly. "You are mine and I love you. Do you love me?"

"Yes, but I love Aden too." She tried to free herself from his arms, only to have them tighten once more. "Let me go." She struggled move violently against his arms as walked towards a small creak. "Beyond let me go."

"Shhh, just watch." He rested his chin on her shoulder once more, as he motioned towards Aden who had removed a silver pistol from his pocket.

Aden gave Dakota a pained look from the corner of his eyes.

His lips pulled upward into a ghost of a smile, as he rested the pistol against his temple. "Bye, Kota."

"No! Aden please stop!" She screamed fighting to get free. "Beyond stop him!"

"It's too late. His number is gone." He covered her ears just as a loud shot rang through the clearing.

Aden's now lifeless body fell into the pond, blood turning the water a bright crimson.

His dull gold eyes stayed open staring at Dakota.

Her eyes flickered down to the sketch pad on her lap.

It was a lifelike drawing of the pistol Aden had just killed himself with.

Carved into the side it read: _Born to be forgotten, Aden Silver_.

**xxxxXXXxxxx**

A scream escaped her lips as she moved to jump up.

She would have fallen from the tree she was sitting if not for Beyond's arm that caught her at the last moment.

Tears fell from her eyes staining her shirt as she broke away from Beyond and jumped down from the branch she was resting on.

The bark on the branches scratched at her skin as she fell.

"Dakota!" A loud crack was heard as she hit the ground.

She looked down to see she had landed on her ankle at a funny angle, pain pulsed through her petite body.

She stood as carefully as possible before trying unsuccessfully to limp away.

She would have landed face first if not for Beyond catching her. "Damn it! What did I say?"

"I need to see Aden! Bring me to Aden!" She yelled fighting against his hold, her eyes frantic.

Her fingers gripped the front of his shirt tightly.

"You need to see a doctor." He pulled her into his arms.

Tears were still falling from her eyes, whether they were from the pain or her dream he couldn't be sure.

Her body was shaking as she tried to free herself.

"No I need to see Aden! Please!" More tears fell from her eyes, as she weakly pushed against his chest.

"Fine, but then you have to see a doctor." He ran towards the old building quickly, which was quite a feat while carrying Dakota.

He kicked open the door scaring everyone in the room.

He gave them a dark glare telling them to mind their own business.

Rain was sitting beside Near on the ground, stacking blocks.

She looked at them with questioning eyes, and was shocked to see Dakota crying and asking for Aden.

Dakota's ankle was swollen and red.

She lightly elbowed Near and looked at him with a concerned look on her face.

"Aden is in his room," Near stated his voice monotone.

He was slightly concerned for the crying girl, but didn't say anything.

His gray eyes just watched as they ran from the room.

Beyond hurried down the empty halls, being yelled at by adults telling him to walk.

He ignored everyone as he hurried towards Aden's room, and almost tripped on a toy firetruck, some kid left in the hall.

He just wanted to get to Aden so he could take her to the infirmary.

"Aden!" He yelled banging on the wood door, as he struggled to hold Dakota with one arm. "Open your door!"

"What is it backup?" Aden growled throwing open his door.

He jaw dropped at the sight that he saw.

Beyond was carrying Dakota who was sobbing and had cuts covering her arms and face.

She was pale and bruised.

"What happened?" His gold eyes shifted to look at her swollen ankle.

"Aden!" She exclaimed, reaching for him.

She gripped his arm and pulled his closer, searching his face for injuries.

She ran her fingers over his temple, a pained look in her eyes.

"She fell from a tree." He growled. "Now can we go get a doctor?"

Dakota nodded, her hand grasping Aden's desperately.

She gave them a small smile. "It does hurt a bit."

**xxxxXXXxxxx**

"What happened to Miss Hudson?" L inquired walking into the infirmary where Dakota was sitting on a hospital bed.

Her ankle was elevated and had a bag of ice covering it.

"She broke her ankle." Aden said glaring at Beyond, who glared right back.

"'Cause I totally meant to fall out of a tree," Dakota rolled her eyes as she waited for the doctor to come back. He was going to put a cast on it. "Well I did, but I didn't mean to break my ankle."

"You meant to fall from a tree?" L asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Not fall, jump." She stated, watching as the doctor entered the room with a box in his arms. He set it down and grabbed a roll of the cotton. He ran a hand through his messy brown hair.

"What color?" He asked wrapping the cotton around her ankle.

"Black," She told him pointing at the roll of fiberglass casting.

"Red," Beyond said, pulling it from the box.

Dakota looked at his with a uncertain look in her eyes before nodding at the doctor.

"I didn't get your name," She looked down at the doctor who was wrapping the roll of fiberglass around the cotton on her ankle.

"Dr. Collins, my name is Dr. Collins." He looked up at her with soft blue eyes, and smiled widely at her.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Dr. Collins," She stated, her voice monotone.

She flinched slightly when he bumped her ankle.

"Advil or Motrin should help with the pain. You need to stay off it." He told her sternly as he handed her a pair of crutches. "Use these."

"I understand. Thank you," She changed the height of the crutches to as low as possible.

She slid them under her arm pits and walk across the room carefully.

Beyond followed her closely in case she fell, though she was sure she wouldn't.

Once when she was younger she had fallen down a flight of stairs, and broken her left leg in two places.

She was using crutches for months.

"Are you okay?" Aden asked moving to help her when she sat down.

"I've been better. Could I get some Motrin?" She questioned laying back on the bed.


	12. My Admirer

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

* * *

_Search For The Sun_

Chapter 12

**Day 27**

"If you need me I will be in the library," Beyond helped her on her bed. "Do you want me to stay?"

"I would like to be alone," She said rolling onto her side to stay at the wall.

"See you tomorrow," Aden told her before turning and walking out her door.

Beyond followed Aden out silently, his expression seeming slightly disappointed at her refusal.

He gave her a strained smile before shutting the door behind him.

Her mind was still on her dream, though she wished to just forget it.

She hated nightmares and thus hated sleep.

She knew she needed a certain amount of sleep to survive, but couldn't bring herself to sleep more than a couple hours every week.

It gave her headaches, which were temporary numbed due to the pain pills she was taking for her ankle.

It helped a bit, but the pills made her sleepy.

She tried to keep her eyes open, but found her mind becoming foggier.

She grabbed a glass of water that was sitting on her nightstand and greedily gulped it down.

The water was slightly warm from sitting by her lamp, but it helped to clear her mind a bit.

She swung her legs over the side of her bed and started to pace, which was extremely hard considering she had to use crutches.

She didn't notice the door open and a slouched form enter, she was too busy trying not fall asleep.

"Damn it!" She cursed when she tripped over her own feet and fell to the floor, her injured ankle hitting the floor with a low thump.

"Are you okay?" L questioned, kneeling beside her fallen form.

"No!" She yelled, shocking L. "I'm not okay! I broke my ankle falling from a tree, after having a dream where my best friend killed himself and I couldn't stop him!"

She tried her hardest to stand, but couldn't push herself off the ground without jostling her ankle.

L offered her a hand, but she gave him a dirty look and stopped trying to stand.

She rolled onto her side, staring at the white wall.

It's not as though it interested her, she just didn't want to look at the face that was so much like Beyond's.

L didn't force his help on her like Beyond would have, he just silently sat in his regular crouch beside her.

"Yes?" She asked looking at him from the corner of her eye.

He was staring at her with a strange look on his face like he wanted to say something he knew he shouldn't.

"Have you ever considered sleeping pills?" He was surprised when her green eyes narrowed dangerously at him. If looks could kill, he would probably be long gone.

"I have taken sleeping pills before," She turned her glare to the wall. "They just made it difficult to awaken."

He nodded as though he understood, but the look in his eyes suggested otherwise.

"It was as though I became trapped in my nightmares and when I would finally awaken I was exhausted from screaming." She sat up, making sure not to bump her leg against anything.

"I see," He bit the end of his thump lightly.

Dakota tried unsuccessfully to stand again, but fell backwards and hit her ankle lightly.

A sharp hiss escaped her lips as she clenched her fists.

"Do you need help?" He asked, crawling towards her.

It was obvious she did, but he refused to help unless she asked for it.

If he helped against her will she would feel like a child and he didn't want to offend her.

"Yes," She sighed heavy and was surprised when she was suddenly lifted off the wood floor.

She was tucked perfectly into his arms, and was slightly disappointed when he laid her down gently on her bed.

"Thank you," She whispered looking at her ceiling.

"You are very welcome Miss Hudson," He chuckled lightly.

"Please do not call me that," She begged, "My name is Dakota."

"The adults would consider it inappropriate if I were to call a female around my age by her first name," He took a seat in her computer chair desk, which others seemed to use more than she did. "It insinuates a deeper relationship than allowed."

"Allowed?" Dakota repeated, her brows raising.

"I am L. I am not allowed to have any type of relationship," He said, his eyes darkening slightly.

"And why not?" She pushed her back against her headboard and sat up.

"There is a 90 percent chance I will die," He replied bluntly his gray eyes now emotionless.

It was as though he was sure he was going to die and there was nothing anyone could do to change that.

It was as though he accepted it.

"Do not talk about death like that," Dakota scolded him, her expression stern.

"Like what?" He was confused, why was she angry now?

"Like it doesn't matter. Nobody here wants you to die," She laid back down, her eyelids drooping.

"Of course people here want me to die. This orphanage wouldn't be here if they didn't expect me to die," He stood and walked towards the door.

"I don't," She whispered as he shut the door.

She heard his steps echoing through the empty hall way as he walked towards the stairs.

She would have fallen asleep if not for the crash outside her room.

She quickly collected her crutches, which L had sat conveniently by her bed, and hurried out in the hall way.

Once there she found Mello had thrown a vase at the wall, and it had shattered across the floor.

Pieces of colorful glass lay everywhere, including the place where Dakota was standing.

She winced as she felt a piece cut into the heel of her foot.

"What happened?" She wondered noticing Mello was still seething mad and Crimson was trying to calm him to the best of her abilities.

"It's that damn Near!" He shouted his blue eyes feral. "He thinks he's so amazing!"

"P-please c-calm d-down," Crimson stuttered, her small figure shaking. Her emerald eyes were filled with tears. "H-he d-didn't m-mean too."

"What didn't he mean to do?" Aden asked appearing out of nowhere.

It was then Dakota noticed children were crowded around.

"Go back to all you're rooms!" She called out in her smooth voice.

Some grumbled and didn't move, while others immediately cleared out not wanting to cause trouble.

"You heard her!" Aden's voice was the exact opposite of her soft voice, being loud and commanding.

His gold eyes were narrowed dangerously, letting the children know not to defy him.

The children who hadn't left were now gone leaving only Crimson, Dakota, Aden, and Mello standing in the now clear hall.

"Well?" Dakota asked using the voice she used on children while trying to get them to admit to something.

"Don't act like your better than me!" He shouted, his fist hitting the wall behind her.

He leaned in his face inches from her's.

"Just who do you think you are?" His lips twisted upwards into a cruel smirk.

"Well, I am a girl who wants to know what bothered her friend enough to throw a probably very expensive vase against the wall. I am a girl, who at the moment, is standing barefoot on shattered glass." His eyes widened as he took a couple steps back. "It is not them greatest feeling in the world, but I would rather know what is bothering you."

"It is Near. He did it again," He spat on the floor, "He beat me on a case and then acted like it was nothing."

"Well, maybe for him it was." Dakota said, her eyes boring into his. "If you have not noticed, he doesn't do much beside work and stack blocks with Rain."

"But that's not fair!" Mello retorted.

"No it isn't!" Dakota snapped, "But then again life isn't fair and I believe you know that as well as I do!"

"No need to yell," Beyond walked up from the stairs. "What happened?"

"Mello lost his temper," Aden stated, "And Dakota stepped in glass, so I would like to get her to the infirmary."

"I have been to the infirmary once in the past week, and I am not going back!" She was still impatient with everything that had happened in one day. "I'm sorry, I am really tired."

"It's fine 'Kota," Aden smiled walking towards her. "I think I'll be able to manage cleaning those cuts, while Mello cleans up the glass."

He shot the blond boy a look, and practically growled the last words showing he was completely serious.

"I'll help," Beyond said, picking Dakota up before Aden did.

Aden grabbed her crutches quickly, knowing she would need them later.

"Thank you," She sighed resting her head on his chest.

She could hear his heart beat clearly, making this position seem strangely intimate.

She tensed as her cheeks turned a bright crimson.

Aden didn't appear to appreciate Beyond acting so friendly with her, but didn't say anything though his eyes darkened.

"So where to?" Beyond asked, carrying towards her room.

"My bathroom," She replied, her body still refusing to relax completely in his hold.

He nodded showing he had heard as he entered her room.

Aden tossed her crutches onto her floor carelessly, and opened the bathroom door for Beyond.

Beyond set her down on the closed toilet seat as Aden searched her drawers for supplies.

"I seem to be getting injured a lot here," She mentioned, chuckling humorlessly.

The cuts on her feet were starting to sting slightly, as she waited for Aden to bandage them.

Aden pulled out a bottle of peroxide, and a washcloth.

"Hold your heel over the bathtub," He demanded, opening the bottle.

She nodded and did her best, though it was hard, to obey.

"This will probably sting," He informed her pouring it lightly over her injured foot.

She wasn't bleeding much, but it still tingled lightly as the peroxide hit the cuts.

Dakota watched her blood bubble with a morbid fascination.

Aden washed it gently with the wash cloth and wrapped it tightly with bandages, mumbling something about her being accident prone.

She narrowed her eyes slightly but didn't say anything, seeing as it was true.

Well, at least it had been for the last couple of days.

Beyond lifted her into his arms and carried her from the bathroom.

She allowed him to carry her to the bed.

He was extremely gentle with her as he set her down on her covers, as though she would shatter at any second.

She ignored this, though she wasn't fond of being treated like she was fragile, and rolled over to lay on her side.

She wasn't quite sure why this upset her so badly.

Maybe it was because she wanted to be strong like her mother.

Her mother would never complain even when she had the right to.

Her mother never cried, or at least Dakota had never seen her cry, over the fact Dakota's father had left them.

She had just smiled and worked to afford a medium sized house, and plenty of things.

Dakota was proud of her mother.

She still missed her, and wished she hadn't left her.

But if she hadn't, then Dakota would have never met Aden or Beyond, or even L.

She would be a loner at her high school where every class was barely a challenge.

Beyond had been watching her expression change from annoyed, to happy, to sad, and finally her expression became unreadable again as she looked out the nearby window.

It was pitch black outside, the stars barely shining through the thick clouds.

"What time is it?" She suddenly asked.

"10:30," He replied, sitting on the edge of her bed.

She yawned tiredly, covering her mouth with a hand.

Her eyes started to droop before closing for the night.

He was sure she would be awake in a couple hours, seeing as her nightmare usually were the worst after a bit.

He took his seat by her desk and began to search through her drawers.

He briefly looked over her paintings and drawings with admiration.

He loved how lifelike all her pictures were.

She added amazing detail, to each and every one.

He decided to leave her room before she awoke and found him looking through her things.

"_Bonne nuit mon amour,_" He whispered, turning off her light as he let himself out.

* * *

_Bonne nuit mon amour_ : means _good night my love_


End file.
